Contra: Project ACT ZERO
by WarioMan3K
Summary: DCC #6 of my fanfic series. Five months have passed since World War III, with the Red Falcon Empire gone for good. All seemed well, until one day on February 9, 20XX, word had spread of a mysterious project codenamed ACT ZERO. Not much was known of its purpose, at least until today... T-RATED CROSSOVER FIC, WITH FANTASY VIOLENCE AND MILD LANGUAGE.
1. Prologue

Here's to another revamped Diamond City Chronicles (DCC) fic of mine, which I'll be posting here. I recommend checking out the earlier DCC entries first so as to avoid any sudden confusions, but it's your call. Oh, and this story takes place slightly before "WarioWare: Arcade Mania!", one of my spinoff fics I posted last month.

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

-Contra: Project ACT ZERO-

Prologue

ARCTIC BOMBER'S P.O.V.

Hey there. I know it seems rather unusual I'd be giving you guys a heads-up on what's about to happen, but that's only because I've recently reformed myself near the end of World War III. Although it was very devastating all over Earth, we were lucky enough to have saved millions of innocent lives...well, I wish I could say the same for Sergeants Mad Dog and Scorpion of Delta Force. On top of that, I once heard sometime later that they've made an appearance in _Contra 4_ alongside Bill Rizer and Lance Bean in a war against Black Viper, Red Falcon's partner-in-slime.

Fast-forward to I think 6 months since the day of our victory. It's about March, in the year 20XX now. Or maybe February...boy, I gotta learn to check the calendar everyday since I don't live with Red Falcon's space goons anymore. But get this: I've just heard from Blaze Bomber that there's strange activity going on in outer space. On top of that, some guy named General Shepherd has chosen us - along with the Four Contras - for some reason, and is intending to brief us in on the situation. Well, time for me to earn my reputation once again by teaming up with Aaron, Ami, Bill, and Lance...

All whilst accompanied by none other than Blaze Bomber himself. And before anybody feels concerned, yes, I've been learning how to control my anger in a heated battle ever since the aftermath of World War III. On top of that, I've sworn on their friends' behalf to never again bully the innocent as long as I live. Though I once was a bad Bomber-girl, I now stand tall as an honorary Contra!

END P.O.V.

* * *

And that's the prologue. I know it's typically short, but other than that, I'll have the first chapter up shortly. The following ones after will be for another time, since I don't intend on rushing myself, let alone finish the story too fast.


	2. Shepherd's arrival

The story opens up with some new video games coming out ever since the Nintendo 3DS became a hit worldwide. Now I know for the fact that at the time, its set of launch titles was rather weak in real life, months before it picked up with _Super Mario 3D Land_, _Mario Kart 7_, _Kid Icarus: Uprising_, and so forth. And yes, the 3DS's library of games - retail and downloadable alike - is pretty good today ever since it made a comeback...for the most part.

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 1: Shepherd's arrival

February 9, 20XX...

[Opening BGM: Ecruteak City (Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal)]

Six months have passed since the era of World War III. Despite its devastating effects on mankind (courtesy of the Red Falcon Empire and the Five Dastardly Bombers), our efforts in taking out the Death Falcon by obliterating its core - Red Falcon himself - have saved the Earth from a fate much worse than World War II itself. However, we Four Contras occasionally recalled hearing Red Falcon's words from our final battle, in which he claimed that the people of Earth would eventually fear our powers and cast us out of Diamond City...if not all of the United States. Bill Rizer and Lance Bean, on the other hand, knew better than to listen to Red Falcon's heresy, and reassured me and Ami Onuki, that it will never happen to any of us. We just have to take full responsibility with our holy-powered gadgets like we usually do, since people are used to the obvious-as-ever fact that guns and explosives, no matter what they look like, _can harm anyone_. After all, not everyone on Earth knows my Contra Rifle and Ami's Bomberman Watch can never harm the innocent.

In addition to rebuilding our world, video game technology had risen to a new era over the months. WarioWare Inc., despite a few setbacks from the aftermath of World War III, kept itself afloat with _WarioWare: D.I.Y._, a Nintendo DS game which allowed players to design - and even share locally or online - their own microgames, songs, and even 4-panel comics, simply by using the in-game "Super MakerMatic 21." Sometime before Thanksgiving, Nintendo released a new handheld system around the world: the Nintendo 3DS (which came in Aqua Blue and Cosmo Black at the time of release), in addition to the launch games that were eventually released by early December: _PilotWings Resort_, _Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition_, _The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D_, _Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions_, and _Star Fox 64 3D_.

Around Christmas time, though, Nintendo released a Flame Red-colored Nintendo 3DS along with _Super Mario 3D Land_ (which Cheerful White and Cute Pink got for 9-Volt as a Christmas gift) when the system itself became popular. Speaking of Christmas, Bill and Lance got me and Ami our own 3DS's (respectively, in Aqua Blue and Flame Red), whereas Wario got _Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3_ on his X-Box 360, from Waluigi. Aside from said game, Wario also bought _NBA Jam: On Fire Edition_ and _NFL Blitz_ via the X-Box LIVE Arcade Marketplace, though he was surprised that EA Sports acquired the rights ever since Midway (the original company behind these two franchises) went bankrupt. Overall, we were glad that the Earth and its people are back to normal, thanks to our efforts in defeating Red Falcon once again.

Today, _Mario Kart 7_ and _Kid Icarus: Uprising_ were all the rage, even in Diamond City and Oakland, California. Although Arctic Bomber - still on probation with Bill and Lance keeping an eye on her - could only afford an Ice White-colored Nintendo 3DS along with _Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition_ and _Tetris Axis_ at the moment, she was happy to have tried out the new Kid Icarus game while it was on display at retail stores...although the controls did take getting used to, at least on her end. As for the DS games, despite not having quite as much of them as any of us do, she owned the following that we recommended starting off with: _Contra 4_, _Mario Kart DS_, _Clubhouse Games_, _Super Mario 64 DS_, _New Super Mario Bros._, _Kirby Super Star Ultra_, _Tetris DS_ (despite its rarity since Nintendo's license expired), and _Tetris Party Deluxe_. She also had a PlayStation 2, with her library consisting of _Contra: Shattered Soldier_, _Neo Contra_, _Gradius V_, _Bomberman: Party Edition_, _Ten Pin Alley_, and _The Next Tetris _(the latter three in her collection being PS1 games). Beyond those games, she recently became interested in _Castlevania_ for console and handheld gaming alike, as well as _Bejeweled_ for PC gaming. Despite not being as skillful a gamer as we are, she was - at the very least - trying her best to adapt to her new life on Earth._  
_

[End BGM]

Sometime in the afternoon during her gaming session, she got a phone call from someone she knew all too well. "Ugh...okay, I'll get it. Just hold on..." She paused her 3DS to pick up her cell phone, and answered the call.

"Yeah? I mean, uh, hello?"

A familiar voice was heard on the other line. _Arctic, it's me, Blaze Bomber. I'm calling from Crygor Labs in Diamond City. Are you available?_

"Well, pretty much. I'm just playing _Tetris Axis_ offline at the moment. Why?"

_You'll have to save it for some other time. It's urgent. A general from the US military wants to meet both of us, including the Four Contras, at City Hall._

"I hope it's not another of Red Falcon's schemes, but then again, he's already dead. Alright, I'm on my way." With that, she hung up and powered off her 3DS before putting it away. Then she left her apartment and hopped on her moped.

* * *

[Meeting BGM: Calamari Hangar (Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II)]

Later that evening, the ex-Hate Bomber arrived at the City Hall in Diamond City, where a military man in green stood in front of an audience that consisted of no less than 20 people, including his men. Blaze Bomber, Bill, Lance, Ami, and I were part of that audience. The man then opened his speech by introducing himself as General Shepherd, and speaking into a microphone on the podium.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I suppose you're all wondering why I summoned you here for a very important but top secret mission. Now, you do know about the ancient history of Bomberman, right? A long time ago, on a distant planet known by many today as Planet Bomber, there existed a group of four evil Bombermen called the 'Dark Force Bombers.' They wanted to turn the world into darkness, but the ancestors of Planet Bomber, led by the legendary Hero Bomber (or 'Hero Bomberman'), fought hard altogether. Eventually, they had succeeded in banishing the evil ones to the Blue Crystals, and separated them all across the other worlds, believing that they might never again break free and conquer all.

"Now, approximately 400 years later, an evil man named Bagular appeared from out of nowhere, after being defeated quite a few times before by the heroic Cheerful White and his close friends, and released the Dark Force Bombers from their Blue Crystal prison. They had conquered the Forest, Wind, Fire, and the Water worlds from their temporary base of operations: the so-called 'Dark World.' But, Cheerful White alone faced the Dark Force Bombers and his arch nemesis, Bagular, and solely defeated them all. Once again, the evil ones were imprisoned in the Blue Crystals, hopefully this time for good.

"Another 2 years had passed - today, the Blue Crystals were rediscovered...not by Red Falcon this time, but by a different race of aliens. To do that, they have stolen one of our space stations, made and funded by our US Government - even before Bagular showed up to release the Dark Force Bombers. We could do absolutely nothing against them back then; thus, they were in complete control of our research station until now. Not only did they discover the Blue Crystals, but they also found a way to create their own army of Bombermen...no, not the usual 'chibi-fied' ones you see. Roughly 2000 human adults were mysteriously kidnapped every year, and taken to the research station to be illegally modified into those kinds of soldiers. The body armor, a hand weapon technology that allows them to generate "bio bombs," everything that your average 'chibi-fied' Bomberman doesn't have. In fact, the "bio bombs" are actually the energy spheres, generated by said hand weapon technology.

"Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to fly towards the stolen research station in outer space, and stop this vile alien race from finishing their ultimate weapons project...codenamed ACT ZERO. They were last seen orbiting a planet where the Super Titanium ore were mined for virtually-impenetrable armor 6 months ago. Aaron...Ami Onuki...Bill Rizer...Lance Bean...Blaze Bomber...and Arctic Bomber. You are among the most powerful soldiers, including plenty of others from our military here, that our country can find. General Shepherd out."

Henceforth, the soldiers clapped their hands with honor as General Shepherd stepped off the podium, while we Four Contras talked with Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber. The moment Shepherd mentioned an army of Bombermen being created, the honorary Contras thought back to what Warlock Bomber, Crasher, and Blaster said, before Wario killed the latter two for the second time along with Warlock Bomber, albeit the first time in his life.

[End BGM]

(FLASHBACK)  
_Blaster laughed heartily. "Oh, that's a good one! Anyway, before you die, we have to admit: we were surprised we're not the only ones interested in creating an army of Bombermen! At least, that's what we heard from Purple Basilisk and Warlock Bomber..."_

_"What the hell are you on about?!" questioned Wario._

_Warlock Bomber answered, "Not only that, but before our arrival, there already was a secret base on Galuga Island - thankfully made just for us!"_

_Mona felt confused. "No, but seriously...what are you guys talking about...?"_

_"Poor Earthlings. There are some things you're better off not knowing. But hey, you don't have to worry about them when we're done killing you!"  
_(END FLASHBACK)

"Maybe Red Falcon's followers were right," said Blaze Bomber, "but General Shepherd didn't mention anything about Galuga Island, much less its base being built."

Arctic Bomber pondered the general's speech. "Hmm...I think something fishy's going on, but I guess we have no choice but to trust him."

"Here's what we'll do," I suggested. "Blaze Bomber, Ami, and I will go and pay another visit to Galuga Island, this time to investigate something we likely didn't notice during our last visit back when World War III was almost over."

Ami nodded. "I'll contact Yuffie and the others to see if they can pitch in and help us out. I know they probably haven't done much crime-fighting alongside us in a while, but still."

"If they can't make it, just tell them not to worry as long as I'm around," said Blaze Bomber.

Ami smiled. "Okay, Blaze."

Bill thought for a moment. "Since Galuga Island's underground base doesn't seem very large compared to that space station General Shepherd mentioned, Lance and I will go with Arctic Bomber."

"Yeah," agreed Lance. "He believed that no less than about 15 people is enough to handle the situation in space."

Arctic Bomber scoffed."Whatever we do is fine by me, but I don't trust Shepherd. Besides, you guys hardly even know him in person!" She turned her attention towards me and Ami. "I hate to sound like I'm scolding you guys, but just the two of you going back to Galuga Island won't make a difference either, even if you're accompanied by Blaze Bomber!"

"Arctic, relax!" interrupted Blaze Bomber. "We've been through worse; not to mention that Aaron and Ami were able to survive on their own the first time, when you guys got separated. For right now, like you said, we just have to trust General Shepherd. If anything doesn't go as planned for whatever reason, we'll stick together and face the bad along with the good. In short, we watch our backs."

Bill, Lance, and Arctic Bomber decided to take off with General Shepherd and his 14 men, whereas Blaze Bomber went with me and Ami back to Crygor Labs to contact Yuffie Kisaragi, who is currently residing at Diamond Dojo ever since we helped her find a new home (one that at the very least brought back memories of Wutai, her old home that got destroyed during the Alien Wars) in return for her assistance in destroying the Red Falcon Empire. Aside from her, however, we were unable to get in touch with Cheerful White and Cute Pink, whom are seemingly unavailable at the moment, but we left them a message anyway. Other than that, once we got word that Yuffie would meet up here by 6:00 AM tomorrow, Blaze Bomber suggested both of us to get some rest. In the meantime, he would assist Penny Crygor in readying the CrygorCopter, which nowadays carried 12 people, including the pilots. Ever since its day of modification for space travel, safety precautions were made throughout the following 5 months, to reduce any sudden accidents that might occur aboard the helicopter.

For one, it had to be enlarged in size a little, in order for ten seats - each with a safety belt - to be be built inside its passenger side. To maintain the weight and leg space, eight seats were arranged to make up two rows of four; that way, there would be enough room to bail out in case of emergency. The last two seats, on the other hand, were placed backwards up front, just behind the cockpit. Finally, Dr. Crygor, Penny, and Blaze Bomber created an energy shield for the helicopter (and its rotors), that way it wouldn't be so easily destroyed in the event of a dogfight or an anti-air attack.

Right now, Penny and Blaze Bomber checked the CrygorCopter's systems to make sure it was ready to go by dawn. As for the Contra Cruiser, no modifications were needed, though they implemented an autopilot feature out of anticipation that something _might_ go wrong during our mission. After all, it's good to have a backup vehicle should the current one get damaged or destroyed at any point.

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

The six Contras have split into two separate groups, but are certain to stay in contact at all times, just in case something goes wrong. Anyway, see you next time!


	3. Two separate explorations

Both heroic teams have begun their separate missions to uncover the truth behind Project: ACT ZERO, while being aware that things may unfold sooner than they realize...that is, if they _live_ to see the rest.

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 2: Two separate explorations

[Stage BGM: Crateria Depths (Metroid: Zero Mission)]

_Mission 1A: The mystery of "ACT ZERO"  
Lieutenant General Shepherd claimed that the space station, which was indeed funded by the US Government, had been hijacked by a mysterious group of aliens - and not the remnants of the Red Falcon Empire.  
Bill Rizer, Lance Bean, and Arctic Bomber are accompanying 14 of Shepherd's men on a space flight to the overtaken station itself.  
February 10, 20XX_

"I wonder what's the name of that space station we're headed..." whispered Arctic Bomber.

"Not to mention that it's far out in space," added Bill, "much less around a planet where Red Falcon's goons had mined for the Super Titanium ore."

"And why would a group of aliens be so interested in creating Bombermen with that, anyway?" asked Lance.

Arctic Bomber scoffed. "Hmph. I still think Shepherd's got something to hide. He didn't even mention Galuga Island, remember?"

Bill reassured, "We'll ask him about it later, but right now, we have our orders."

Lance nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Try not to worry so much; we're not expendable."

Arctic sighed. "Says the man who _clearly_ resembles-" But before she could finish, Lance gasped and interrupted her.

"No! Shhh! There are people reading all this!"

"Dude, I was just saying that you do resemble the guy who played John Rambo and even Rocky Balboa back in his heyday..."

Lance covered his ears with his fingers, much to the soldiers' bafflement. "La la la la la! I can't hear you!"

Bill glanced over to the soldiers. "You'll have to excuse my old buddy. He does get a little tense whenever someone brings up the obvious about him, but he's a good guy."

Lance, still focused on Arctic Bomber, warned, "My appearance and _that guy's appearance_ have absolutely nothing to do with each other, so don't go around spreading rumors!"

"Okay, okay, just calm down already..."

Despite the commotion over Lance's "obvious" resemblance to...well, Rambo, Arctic Bomber kept her thoughts to herself. A few hours later, the whole group arrived at the abandoned space station. According to Shepherd's intel, it was known as the Weapons Research Station, abbreviated as the W.R.S. It had been around for nearly 5 and a half years since the Alien Wars. Upon the arrival, the group was attacked by none other than the "Dark Force Bombers" - consisting of Earth Bomber, Cyclone Bomber, Fire Bomber, and Aqua Bomber.

[Interrupt BGM]  
[Fight BGM: Space Pirates Battle (Metroid Prime)]

_Ho, ho...we have visitors!_

_This space station belongs to us!_

_You want it back, yer gonna have to come and get us!_

_But that's if you can make it all the way to our lair alive..._

The four Bombers vanished into thin air, having finished their introduction. Then Bill shouted, "Those were holograms!"

"Looks like they wanna play cat-and-mouse with us." added Lance. "We've got company!"

Swarming the group's way were a group of dragon-like aliens, each with a laser-sharped tongue and a pointed tail. Like with the beasts that served Red Falcon as his brethren, they had concentrated acid for blood.

Arctic Bomber felt grossed out. "Are those things the Xenomorphs from the _Alien_ movies?! Eck!"

"Watch out for their claws!" warned Bill. "Whatever you guys do, don't get too close!"

The Xenomorphs attacked relentlessly, looking for an opening on their soon-to-be victims. But, 14 of Shepherd's soldiers fought back and hard. They had their assault rifles, miniguns, and rocket launchers at the ready; whereas Bill and Lance had their own guns to back up the troops. Before the mission began with the trip to outer space, Blaze Bomber gave the two Contras the Spread Gun and Laser Beam power-ups, aware that it's almost unlikely there will be power-up pods floating around the W.R.S. As for Arctic Bomber, all she needed were her ice powers and Bowling Bombs to assess the situation. Everyone then opened fire, making sure to distance themselves from the acidic blood. However, two of the Xenomorphs surprised the soldiers by jumping down from the ceiling and killed four of them with their claws and laser-sharp tongues. Despite the uneven odds, Shepherd's group unloaded their weapons on the alien aggressors, killing them in the end - but not without splattering the acidic blood on the floor. Everyone backed away, and met up with Shepherd just as he stepped outside the ship.

[End BGM]

"Good work, soldiers!" congratulated Shepherd. "But this is only the beginning. The Dark Force Bombers, apparently supervising Project: ACT ZERO now, are hiding somewhere aboard the W.R.S."

Two of the soldiers, named Jimbo and Sully (each with a Southern accent), spoke up. "Yeah. The ones we saw were holograms!"

"It's like they expected us..."

Shepherd responded, "Well, that will soon change, now that we're on board. There should be a main deck where the aliens are running the project, but the only way in - by elevator - is safeguarded by a force field to keep out intruders."

Arctic Bomber scoffed. "Figures..."

"But, we _can_ disable the force field to get in, but to do so, there are three different sectors, each housing a control room that powers the force field. These sectors, each with a different environment for a battlefield, are said to be the 'training grounds' for the victimized test subjects. If you can disable the controls in each sector, the force field should shut down. I'll be monitoring the entire operation from aboard our space ship. Good luck!" He walked back into the ship.

Arctic placed her hands on the sides of her helmet. "This is gonna be a long, long day...or night...whatever."

"Arctic, I know you don't trust General Shepherd, but we have no choice," said Bill.

"Bill's right," agreed Lance. "Those Dark Force Bombers have to be stopped at all costs."

* * *

[Stage BGM: Wrecked Ship (Super Metroid)]

Elsewhere, back on Earth, my group had taken off for New Zealand aboard the CrygorCopter. Blaze Bomber, Ami, and I couldn't recruit Young Cricket, Ashley, or a few other WarioWare pals of ours, but at the very least, we were able to get in touch with Yuffie. Since she had visited Galuga Island alongside us before, despite getting brainwashed by Warlock Bomber and Brain Bomber along the way (and forced to attack our friends against her will), she was eager to check it out once again. Only now, since Red Falcon no longer had control of the island, Yuffie needn't worry about any sudden tricks.

_Mission 1B: Galuga Archipelago revisited  
Aaron and Ami Onuki of the Four Contras head on back to the jungle depths of the Galuga Archipelago, intending to search for clues as to why the underground base was built on that island long before Red Falcon's minions took over.  
Blaze Bomber and Yuffie Kisaragi are accompanying the co-leaders as backup.  
February 10, 20XX  
4:05 AM_

Due to our past activities on the island itself, mostly involving the destruction of all its outer defenses, it was safe for us to land the CrygorCopter just by the waterfall, where the underground base was located.

"Time sure flies, doesn't it, Ami?" I asked.

Ami nodded in agreement. "Yep. Our first trip to the Galuga Archipelago in 6 or so months."

Blaze Bomber added, "At the very least, though, there aren't any stragglers to deal with...I hope. Speaking of which, I read an article one time, which explained the origins of the island's underground base."

Then Yuffie added her two cents to our conversation. "As much as I hate to agree with Crasher and Blaster, they admitted that the base existed long before World War III. Still, the fact that they claimed it to have been built 'just for them' disgusts me this day. By the way, Blaze Bomber, did that article explain in full detail about the base's origins? Like, say, any Bomberman-related experiments that General Shepherd told you earlier?"

"All signs pointed out to the US Government having funded the construction of Galuga Island's underground base in the last 5 years as of the Alien Wars, for use as an outpost in case of another war. Beyond that, it's all 'classified information' and stuff. In short, not a word about Bomberman-esque experiments like with that space station General Shepherd was talking about."

"Well, let's press on and see what we find."

"Guys, hang on a sec.," I interrupted. "I just remembered something: Did the article, by any chance, mention the supercomputer that generated a holographic brain?"

"Yeah," answered Blaze Bomber. "In fact, it was programmed to power the whole base and its defense systems. Why?"

Ami reminded, "Aaron and I actually stumbled upon it while we were separated from Bill, Lance, and the others. Come to think of it, it's possible we shut down the defenses when we took out the supercomputer itself. So therefore, the base should be clean enough to search around unscathed, right?"

[Interrupt BGM]  
[Fight BGM: Kraid Battle (Metroid: Zero Mission)]

Just then, a fortress wall arose from beneath the surface, poised to kill us in its "classic" layout: four snipers, two cannons, and a red core. However, the snipers we saw looked different from the ones that worked for Red Falcon; now, they resembled humanoid robots with scar-like marks reaching down their faces, across their left eyes. The right hand appeared normal (albeit strapped with a chain), while the left hand resembled a claw with a large, circular palm. The "snipers" roared like zombies, and fired away with their sniper rifles, while throwing energy "bio bombs" with their left hands.

Yuffie gasped at the sight of the enemies. "I thought that base, let alone the entire island, was supposed to be empty! Now we've got robot zombies who somehow act like they're Bombermen?"

The red core began flashing, leading Ami to warn us, "Don't look now, but that thing's charging up!"

We immediately jumped up onto higher ground just before the fortress wall's core fired a large laser beam. The cannons, on the other hand, did not shoot explosive shells, but rather smaller laser shots. Blaze Bomber got out two power-up pods from his satchel, and tossed them up high for me to shoot down. The pods contained the Homing Missiles and the Crash Missiles, which I grabbed for both weapon slots on my Contra Rifle. For now, I used the Crash Missiles to blow up the laser cannons, while Ami damaged the core with her Thunder Bombs, preventing it from firing anymore charged-up beams. As for Yuffie, she cast Curaga on the "snipers", killing them instantly since the undead take damage from Cure spells. Then she sliced the malfunctioning core with her Conformer, causing a chain reaction that blew up the entire fortress wall.

[End BGM]  
[Resume Stage BGM]

Breathing a sigh of relief, she took a moment to say, "Even after six months of helping Kat and Ana's sensei train them in the arts of ninjutsu, I've still got it."

Before we could ponder over what was up with the zombified "Bombermen", the ground suddenly gave away, sending us plummeting into an underground laboratory. When we regained consciousness, we discovered a lot of glass tanks, each containing the humanoid "Bombermen" we fought just now. Blaze Bomber got out a scanner, and analyzed the data on the nearby computers. A brilliant invention by Dr. Crygor, the scanner had a useful feature: password decryption.

_OCTOBER 3, 20XX AD_

_And thus began our project on creating our own army of "Bombermen" during the construction of the underground base on Galuga Island, off the coast of New Zealand. Two months since the Alien Wars, we lost a good number of men that were defending both Diamond City and Neo City in the United States - and that was before Bill Rizer and Lance Bean finished the job by destroying Red Falcon and his Hate Bombers. We don't know how we can replicate the Bomberman-like technology the world saw during that war, but with enough research and effort, we will achieve a new military technology for the future._

* * *

Meanwhile, inside a command center, someone was monitoring our actions, as if he wanted us out. Whatever his intention was, we're bound to find out sometime later, and hopefully not too late. Just then, he received a call from an unknown source.

_Do Aaron and Ami suspect anything?_

"Yes. They have a hacker on their team..." He typed in a code on his computer, and pressed "Enter" afterwards. "A _former_ hacker, if you will. They had unauthorized access to our project's files."

_What? They must not be allowed to discover the truth, let alone leak it to the public. Terminate them!_

"...Understood. I'll see to it that they don't leave here alive."

Unbeknownst to us, the "man in charge" had just hacked into Blaze Bomber's scanner through the base's network, causing it to malfunction and shut down. To add insult to injury, a blaring klaxon went off with all glass tanks opening up; the humanoid "Bombermen" came out to attack us.

"So much for analyzing the encrypted data," groaned Yuffie.

Blaze Bomber was baffled at the thought. "But the base was shut down when Aaron and Ami blew up that supercomputer 6 months ago!"

"Well, Aaron, here we go again!" said Ami.

"My sentiments exactly, Ami. Remind me to talk to General Shepherd if we ever get out of this."

[End BGM]

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

The mysterious commander of Galuga Island's underground base, having known about our heroes' presence, has now taken such lengths to make sure they don't ever live to tell the story to everyone in Diamond City. The question is: who's really behind all this, despite General Shepherd's stories about aliens supervising Project ACT ZERO? The heroes may be likely to find out soon enough, but saving themselves first is a top priority.


	4. Crew expendable

Despite some losses along the way, Bill, Lance, and Arctic Bomber continue their side of the campaign to uncover the mysteries of Project: ACT ZERO. Aaron, Ami, Blaze Bomber, and Yuffie, on the other hand, must fight for their lives to ensure their survival - though neither one was too surprised at this point...

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 3: Crew expendable

[Stage BGM: Phazon Mines (Metroid Prime)]

_Mission 2A: Battle aboard the Weapons Research Station  
It was confirmed that the Dark Force Bombers, thought to have been defeated long ago, have taken control of the W.R.S. and the alien "Xenomorphs" that attacked the US Marines.  
Under General Shepherd's orders, the group must find and disable the force field controls, in order to access the main deck.  
February 10, 20XX_

With 10 of the US soldiers left, General Shepherd recommended that they, along with Bill, Lance, and Arctic Bomber, split into 3 groups to take care of all three sectors at once. The first group (consisting of Bill, Lance, Arctic, Jimbo, and Sully) went to cover Sector 1 (Dungeon); the second took on Sector 2 (Mountain); and the third group was assigned to Sector 3 (Desert). At the same time, however, the Dark Force Bombers were informed of the situation at hand by a mysterious caller...

_They've taken the bait and split into separate groups. Aqua Bomber, you are to oversee the sectors from the security monitors, while the rest of you take your positions at the three sectors. Deny them the right to live at all costs!_

"At your service, master," acknowledged Earth Bomber, stepping into a teleporter for Sector 1. "When I'm through, they'll be the ones who are beaten so badly and not me!"

Fire Bomber laughed heartily, walking into the teleporter for Sector 2. "Hah hah! This'll be fun!"

"The poor jerks will soon learn to appreciate my adorable cyclones!" boasted Cyclone Bomber, taking the teleporter for Sector 3.

Then Aqua Bomber said, "Hopefully it'll prove entertaining; definitely something to pass the time while we finish rounding up the kidnapped Earthlings into an army of Super Bombermen. It'll definitely be a hell on Earth before they know what hit them..."

* * *

Meanwhile, in Sector 1 (Dungeon), Bill's group took careful steps to make certain there weren't any ambushes. They didn't want to risk any further losses like from the entrance to the W.R.S. As they explored the whole sector in search of the force field controls, there were glass tanks filled to the brim with humanoid "Bombermen", each with an inscription next to said tanks...

"_Bomberman: The Genesis..._" Bill read aloud.

Lance followed, "_All I know is my own existence._ ...Eh?"

"They sure did a number on that guy, didn't they?" asked Arctic Bomber. The group then came across a computer, which Lance used a decryptor to analyze the data. What it displayed on the screen was shocking, indeed:

_PROJECT: ACT ZERO_

_The main purpose, especially in return for the attacks by these "Bombermen" that served Red Falcon during World War III, is to empower both US soldiers and civilians alike with the battle suits - each with a special gauntlet on the left hand that allows the usage of energy "bio bombs." __Long before that time, we started the project by having built an underground base on Galuga Island, oftentimes referred to as the Galuga Archipelago, back on Earth. We originally intended it to be an outpost in case of another war, as with the Alien Wars. However, we had to take a different step to make certain no more lives are lost. That was when Project: ACT ZERO was born._

_Unfortunately, given the fact that our experiments were not successful, we were forced to abandon Galuga Island and start over with a space station as a means of backup: the Weapons Research Station. The "Super Titanium" alloy for the battle suits is one thing, but if we expect to make our Super Bombermen invincible, we must find and harness a key ingredient that makes us tick. It is rumored to be on Earth, but only a few people possess that key ingredient. Once we get our hands on that, we will be one step closer to achieving our ultimate dream._

_END OF FILE_  
_W.R.S. CREW EXPENDABLE_

[End BGM]  
[Fight BGM: GF Battle Theme (Metroid Prime 3: Corruption)]

Just then, the computer shut itself off with an alarm blaring all over the place. The "Super Bombermen" woke up, and busted out of the glass tanks, ready to do battle. And leading them was none other than Earth Bomber, who brandished a battle axe. "I hate to break it to you, but what you just read on the monitor is the last thing you'll ever see before you die!" He pulled out a Mega Mushroom, supersizing himself in just seconds.

"WHOA!" yelped Jimbo. "He's twice as big as he was before!"

"But, wasn't that thing only in video games?" wondered Sully.

Arctic Bomber corrected, "_New Super Mario Bros._, to be precise!"

Earth Bomber's voice boomed across the dungeon, twice as deep as normal. "You're gonna be the ones who get beaten so badly! Have at it, Super Bombermen!" The armored, albeit zombified beings saluted in unison, and attacked without saying a word.

"They're attacking!" screamed Jimbo. "I don't know for sure if we can survive this hellish onslaught!"

Sully gasped at the sight of the attacks. "Incoming bio bombs! TAKE COVER!"

Arctic Bomber grunted, "Amen to that! These guys are giving Bomberman a bad rep!"

While Jimbo, Sully, and Arctic Bomber took cover next to Bill and Lance, the "Super Bombermen" made use of the Line Bomb tactic, an addition to their special gauntlets. Like in the _Bomberman_ games, it typically drops a bomb line. How many bombs were placed all at once depended on the number of unexploded bombs a Bomberman could set at a time (via "Bomb Up" items). In that case, the "Super Bombermen" had ten bombs to set at once, giving a load of trouble for the group.

"Aw, quit being scared!" taunted Earth Bomber. "Our Super Bombermen just wanna play with you!"

Arctic Bomber growled. "Shut up! I'm gonna cut you down to size for that! Bill, Lance, gimme a boost!"

Bill and Lance nodded, and held Arctic Bomber by her feet before flinging her upwards like a catapult. Then she generated her icicle spears with an icy wind, and slammed their blunt edges on Earth Bomber's face. Afterwards, she clung herself onto his head, climbing around to avoid his axe swings. She pelted him with her Bowling Bombs, until the Mega Mushroom's effects wore off, shrinking him back to normal. Arctic Bomber fell down with him, but not before throwing her Bowling Bombs downwards to set off the bomb lines, resulting in a massive explosion that wiped out the "Super Bombermen" along with Earth Bomber himself. Arctic and her friends, on the other hand, were not killed.

"Sorry I had to do this, but they left me no other choice! Whoever's in charge of this project really screwed up those victims into brain-dead zombies."

"But they didn't move or talk like zombies..." said Jimbo.

"She was speaking metaphorically, Jim," added Sully.

"Right now, we gotta shut down the controls for the force field!" reminded Bill.

Lance had second thoughts, considering the outcome of the battle. "I don't think we need to. The blast from all the combined explosions must have taken them out." He surveyed the entire sector alongside his allies, and found that the controls were indeed totaled in the explosions.

Arctic Bomber sighed. "I hope the other guys are doing any better..."

[End BGM]  
[Interlude BGM: Koume and Kotake's Theme (The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)]

Just then, Fire Bomber and Cyclone Bomber teleported in, with the former stepping out to talk first. "You may have killed Earth Bomber, but we already took care of the others in Sectors 2 and 3!"

"They were surprised at what I could do!" taunted Cyclone Bomber.

Bill retorted, "Oh yeah? I'll bet they shut down the controls for the force field, too!"

"Well, they did...but their punishment was termination! All you fools are doing is following General Shepherd without ever guessing the truth!"

Lance felt confused. "What are you on about? And how do you know him, let alone us?"

Arctic Bomber gritted her teeth. "I knew it! General Shepherd DOES have something to do with all this. The project being funded by the United States government, and the fact that you bozos somehow knew who we were, and that we were coming, everything! AND not to mention that he came out of the ship AFTER we took out the Xenomorphs earlier! But the question is: why?"

Fire Bomber chuckled deviously. "If you wanna know the whole truth, then come to the main deck! All you gotta do is beat us and our Super Bombermen, and you're home free!"

Bill did not let his guard down one bit. "And if we lose?"

Cyclone Bomber answered, "Then you'll serve us, and appreciate my cyclones!"

Lance sighed. "Fine. It's a deal..."

Arctic Bomber still glared at the two Dark Force Bombers. "You just wait till Aaron, Ami, and Blaze Bomber discover everything about your evil project on Galuga Island, and expose it all to the public!"

"HAH! Don't count on it, stupid girl! Our master already knows what they're up to! We'll be back...and waiting for you at the main deck." With that said, Fire and Cyclone retreated to the main deck.

Jimbo began to worry about our lives. "Gee...we're screwed! Game over man! Game over!"

"Now what are we gonna do?!" complained Sully.

"We're gonna fight for it to the finish," replied Arctic Bomber. "I refuse to lose you guys just like Mad Dog and Scorpion from 6 months ago! This bullcrap project has got to stop before it threatens our friends' lives!"

[End BGM]

* * *

[Stage BGM: Gekokujoh Norakura (Contra: Hard Corps)]

_Mission 2B: Underground base revisited  
Aaron, Ami, Blaze Bomber, and Yuffie are forced into battle against the humanoid "Bombermen" all around the underground base.  
The truth is yet to be revealed, as to whoever's really in charge of Project: ACT ZERO, much less the whole base on Galuga Island.  
February 10, 20XX  
4:30 AM_

With the zombified "Bombermen" milling about, we were fighting and fleeing for our lives, especially when they were backed up by the Xenomorphs. We prayed they wouldn't kill us before we ever discover the truth and leave here alive.

"Those alien creatures aren't supposed to be here!" shouted Yuffie.

"Somebody must be really paranoid about people unveiling this project's secrets!" concluded Blaze Bomber.

"Ya think?!"

Being outnumbered, I quickly thought of a plan. "We'll have to find and shut down the supercomputer that was powering the base. We can't fend them off forever!"

"I'll go with Aaron and Ami to take out that supercomputer," said Blaze Bomber, eyeing Yuffie, "while you find whoever's in charge of this operation. We'll cover you!"

The teen ninja nodded. "Alright, but what if something happens to you?"

"No time to explain!" I warned. "We've got to uncover the truth and the mastermind behind Project: ACT ZERO before these vermin do us in!"

Ami agreed, "I know I sound like I'm repeating myself sometimes, but I'm with you on that one, Aaron!"

As we fled from the laboratory, Blaze Bomber incinerated as much of the Xenomorphs and zombified "Bombermen" as he could with his flame jets, making Yuffie's life easier. Just then, someone called out to us, _Your actions won't stop Project: ACT ZERO from coming to fruition!_ We demanded to know who that caller was, but he insisted that we're better off not knowing. With no other options, we chose to split into two teams as planned. On account of being swarmed all over, Ami and I decided it's time we activated our 30-hit Konami Barriers. Since we have to be perfectly still for this to work, Blaze Bomber covered for us.

"Up, up, down, down!" I began.

"Left, right, left right!" followed Ami.

Then we shouted in unison: "B, A, Select, Start!"

Knowing that our Contra Rifle and Bomberman Watch must recharge for 30 minutes once the souped-up barriers have taken 30 hits, we needed to be even more careful with our moves. Henceforth, we trekked to the underground base through the bottom of the waterfall, and blasted through the gates the same way as we did on our last visit. Some red cores were plated with metallic shields, but even that didn't last against our attacks like in _Contra_ and _Contra 4_. Despite taking some hits along the way, Ami and I led Blaze Bomber to the room where we fought the supercomputer's holographic brain. Our suspicions were correct: someone had indeed rebuilt the supercomputer itself. Upon our arrival, it generated two holographic brains instead of one; however, instead of attacking, they merely scanned the both of us.

I wondered about the supercomputer's unusual ability. "Eh? I don't remember that in both _Contra_ and _Contra 4_..."

Ami gulped. "Me neither. But keep your guard up!"

The holographic brains eventually took the forms of both myself and Ami, much to Blaze Bomber's surprise. "Whoa! That's something you don't see in a Contra game everyday...I think."

[End BGM]  
[Boss BGM: A Spirit of Bushi (Contra: Hard Corps)]

As soon as the supercomputer generated the holographic clones of me and Ami, it kept Blaze Bomber out of the room with an electrical field, before sending in the Xenomorphs after him. Then the clones generated the holographic versions of my Contra Rifle and Ami's Bomberman Watch before attacking us with the Spread Gun and Fire Bombs. Obviously, the Spread Gun is rather difficult to dodge when pitted against it - and we knew by then how Red Falcon's goons felt whenever any of us Contras had the Spread Gun equipped. Ami and I couldn't avoid losing more of our Konami Barriers' power, even when swerving around the clones. Since I lost the Crash Missiles along the way, I had to keep my Homing Missiles in reserve and stick with the default machine gun.

The moment we retaliated, the clones switched to the Flamethrower and the Thunder Bombs. We leaned just beneath the flames, and returned fire with our own weapons, eventually wearing down the fake Ami...but not without taking more hits to the point in which our barriers' power was about to expire. Immediately, the fake me stunned us with a lightning strike and revived the fake Ami by touching its shoulders. Even when we eventually took down the fake me, the story was the same: the fake Ami temporarily incapacitated us before bringing the fake me back to life.

"Crap!" I grunted. "They're not going down!"

"Maybe defeating them _simultaneously_ would work!" suggested Ami.

Due to the fake me having switched back to the Spread Gun, we were forced to jump and dodge around again, even at the expense of our energy. The instant our Konami Barriers expired, we had tired out. The gunfire from the Spread Gun weakened us to the point, in which the fake Ami easily knocked us out with Fire Bombs. Eventually, the clones took a step closer for the finishing blow. Just when it seemed like the supercomputer itself was about to win the rematch, Ami got up and chucked her Thunder Bombs at the clones, while I backed her up with my Homing Missiles, making certain that the clones were simultaneously taken down. The last thing we saw before passing out was the supercomputer malfunctioning once again, with its holographic clones reverting back to their brain-like forms before shorting out, eventually causing it to explode.

[End BGM]

* * *

Nearly half an hour later, Ami and I came to. Then we saw Blaze Bomber and Yuffie nudging us upon waking up, worried we might not have survived. Afterwards, we found out that the project, while funded by the US Government, was actually started by a then-unknown organization known as Shadow Company. According to the "man-in-charge" (who fled the base after Yuffie ran into him), Shadow Company excelled in black ops missions, even at the expense of its own members. The "Bombermen" we had fought earlier were in fact called the "Super Bombermen", though the ones that attacked us were zombified; in other words, failed experiments. As for the Xenomorphs themselves, which were somehow cloned from Red Falcon's brethren, Shadow Company also planned on using them for the development of biological weapons along with the "Super Bombermen." The only thing the "man-in-charge" did not give away was the main leader's identity, intending it to be the last thing we'd ever discover for ourselves before dying.

"When will we really discover the mastermind behind this twisted project?" asked Ami.

"As far as we're concerned," answered Blaze Bomber, "all in due time. I wouldn't be surprised if they're not too happy about us attempting to publicize everything we saw with our own eyes."

Yuffie added, "On top of that, the man in charge of this mess here is none other than Colonel Bassad! His military uniform only conceals a cruel dictator within him, deep down in his soul. When I ran into him, he...well, he creeps me out, going on about how we're gonna die for 'illegally' decrypting his organization's project files. Then he told me he wouldn't be so merciful when he calls for backup..." She paused momentarily to let out a sigh from her mouth. "...And that's when I ran back to you guys. I hate to say this, but he wants us dead right now!"

"Not if we can help it," I calmed her. "Perhaps splitting up may have been a bad idea in the first place, but at least we now know who's behind the attacks. Anyway, we've been through worse, and I think we can still escape with our lives. But if that guy, whose name I can't help but recognize from _Contra: Legacy of War_, does find us in person, we'll have to go through him - together this time."

Blaze Bomber sighed painfully, dreading the idea of having to fight against a human soldier like he did way back when he was brainwashed against his will during the Alien Wars. "So it's all come down to this. Even today, there exists the evil forces of Red Falcon in human skin. If this is essential for the survival of man and Bomber alike, I'll take the fight to Bassad and his followers alongside you...no, _we'll_ take the fight to him and his followers together. Either way, Mihaele help us..."

Though it was only a matter of time before Shadow Company would get word of our mission and send its troops after us, we wasted no time evacuating the underground base in order to get off the Galuga Archipelago.

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

The truth is close to being revealed, and unsurprisingly, Colonel Bassad is desperate enough to make sure it remains in the dark to the public eye. And speaking of Bassad, he only appeared in _Contra: Legacy of War_ on the PS1 in reality, though it was developed by the infamous Appaloosa Interactive rather than Konami themselves at the time. I know it's silly to glance around the Contra series' storyline when its gameplay counts most of the time, but seeing as to how the non-canon entry's plot lazily resembled the one from _Contra: Hard Corps_ on Sega Genesis, Colonel Bassad is essentially Colonel Bahamut. So therefore, I thought it to be an okay excuse to put him in my story, albeit as a different character rather than a full-fledged dictator, at this point.


	5. One less loose end

With Colonel Bassad revealed as the madman pulling strings in an effort to kill our heroes, Aaron and Ami are forced to shift their focus towards leading Blaze Bomber and Yuffie on a path of survival against the likes of the rogue colonel himself. Will they, along with Bill, Lance, and Arctic Bomber, reunite in time to spread the truth to the media and the people of the United States?

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 4: One less loose end

Another ten minutes had passed since Ami and I woke up from unconsciousness. We had just returned to our CrygorCopter and took off, so we could report to Penny Crygor the shocking news. However, before we could even get in touch with her, let alone leave Galuga Island, a good number of enemy helicopters flew by and opened fire on us! It was as we had feared: Shadow Company didn't plan on letting us live to spread the truth to the media and citizens alike. In fact, the 'man-in-charge' who ran off earlier was leading the assault, revealing himself as Colonel Bassad.

[Alert BGM: Black Shudder (Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow)]

"I warned you that I wouldn't be so merciful when I call for backup," his voice boomed over the speakers. "I am Colonel Bassad of Shadow Company, and we'll soon make America into the strongest nation on Earth with our Super Bombermen and the Xenomorphs at the military's disposal!"

"So it _was_ General Shepherd all along!" shouted Yuffie. "I figured as much!"

"Well, lucky you that we didn't have to _bluntly_ advertise it all for you to get the hint. Very good detective skills you got, even when the General didn't mention Galuga Island yesterday, I'll admit. But then again, we'd have to kill you for betraying everyone in the country."

Blaze Bomber became appalled at what Bassad told us. "Betraying the people of America? You're the ones who did just that by _killing innocent people_ with your twisted experiments! You freaked them up beyond the healing capabilities of White Magic, not us!"

Bassad huffed in denial. "You scum know too much. Open fire, men! Leave no corpse untouched!"

The helicopters of Shadow Company fired their EMP missiles to disable our CrygorCopter and its energy shield, before shooting us down. We were forced to crash-land back onto Galuga Island, although the damage was - thankfully - not severe. Blaze Bomber immediately got out the helicopter's interdimensional communicator to warn Bill, Lance, Arctic Bomber, and the US soldiers that were not with Shadow Company.

"Bill! Lance! Arctic! This is Blaze Bomber! We've all been had! We're under attack by Shepherd's men at the Galuga Archipelago on Earth! Aaron, Ami, do what you can and take out those choppers! Do not trust Shepherd! I say again, do not trust Shepherd! Yuffie, get down!" One of the stray missiles damaged the cockpit, cutting off all further communications. "AACK!"

Yuffie gasped in shock. "Blaze! Are you okay?!"

The honorary Contra grunted in response. "I've felt worse...but we've gotta get the word out to the people of the United States before Colonel Bassad kills us!"

[End BGM]

* * *

[Stage BGM: Guillotine (Contra: Hard Corps)]

APPROXIMATELY 40 MINUTES EARLIER...

_Mission 3A: Loose Ends  
With Arctic Bomber's suspicions about General Shepherd's agenda raised further, she and her remaining allies proceed with shutting down Project: ACT ZERO aboard the W.R.S.  
Even Bill and Lance believe something is amiss, much less the fact that the Dark Force Bombers somehow knew they were coming to begin with.  
February 10, 20XX_

Bill, Lance, Arctic Bomber, and Privates Jimbo and Sully had fought their way back to the elevator, returning to the main deck of the W.R.S. According to the information they've discovered during their trip, the Super Titanium alloy wasn't concentrated 100 times over with dark power; in other words, the weakness is no longer restricted to Star energy. Aside from fighting the "Super Bombermen" and the alien Xenomorphs, they had not one but two giant alien turtles - each cloned from Slave Beast Taka - to contend with.

Arctic Bomber groaned at just how disgusting these beasts looked. "Great, now we have TWO Slave Beast Takas to kill! I definitely don't recall that happening in _Contra: Shattered Soldier_!"

"Dude, can you at least fight WITHOUT mentioning a video game?!" complained Jimbo.

"Those freak shows mean business!" added Sully. "I sure as hell didn't sign up for this job to be their dinner!"

The Slave Beast Taka clones sent out maggots and wasps, while puking out the pink energy bursts from their mouths. As for the "Super Bombermen", they now had machine guns similar to Bill and Lance's; only now, the sophisticated guns had _three_ different weapons, each with their own charge shots. The Master Chief-like clones opened fire without mercy, switching between the machine gun, flamethrower, and grenade launcher.

"Well, I'll be damned! I could use one of those, just like in _Contra: Shattered Soldier_!"

"What are you blabbering about?" asked Bill. "You've got your ice powers, and Bowling Bombs..."

[End BGM]  
[Fight BGM: Slave Beast Taka (Contra: Shattered Soldier)]

The ex-Hate Bomber wasted no time swerving around the gunfire, and swiped the assault rifle from one of the "Super Bombermen" for her very own. "Pathetic ripoffs of Master Chief who give Bomberman a bad name!" she exclaimed. "This...is...CONTRA!" Bill and Lance, recalling the time Arctic Bomber angrily swiped their holy-powered M16 machine guns to chase down Brain Bomber and his minions 5 months back on Galuga Island, feared that she would shoot around aimlessly. But this time, however, her aim wasn't so abysmal anymore; she actually held the gun with both her arms like a real soldier would. Then again, one might say it's because she's not holding _two_ assault rifles this time.

"Jimbo, Sully, help us with those Super Bombermen and the cloned Xenomorphs!" ordered Bill.

"My buddy's got a point," said Lance. "I think Arctic's got everything under control with those two giant turtles milling about, thanks to the firearms training we gave her."

"Are you sure?" asked Jimbo.

"Whatever makes me feel any better!" replied Sully.

While the gunfire is useless against the "Super Bombermen" due to their Super Titanium alloy, concussive weapons (mostly from Earth) work wonders even without the Star energy since they're not as durable as Red Falcon's army of evil Bombermen and women. The three weapons on the rifle were as Arctic Bomber quoted from _Contra: Shattered Soldier_: Heavy Machine Gun, Fire Whip (typically a flamethrower), and Diver Mine (grenade launcher).

"Hey, punks!" she boasted. "Time for an ass-whooping!"

Bill and Lance heard what she just said, with the latter warning her, "Don't go overboard, Arctic!"

Arctic Bomber wasted no time switching to the Diver Mines and blasting the Slave Beast Takas' wasp and maggot nests. Then she switched to the Fire Whip and figured out how to charge her gun. Since she equipped the flamethrower itself, its charge shot was a powerful flaming blast, called the Energy Shot. As she fired the charged shots every few seconds, she swerved around to avoid getting eaten by the Slave Beast Takas, until she eventually blew their heads off.

"I think I know what's coming next," she commented. "Aaron and Ami told me about this one time..."

As expected, the giant alien turtles turned around, showing their sickening man-like faces. Arctic Bomber resisted the urge to vomit at the sight, and stuck with the Fire Whip. Bill and Lance, having taken out the rest of the "Super Bombermen", came to help her, while Jimbo and Sully took out the remaining Xenomorphs. The Slave Beast Takas opened up their mouths, and puked out a stream of acidic vomit. Jimbo and Sully barely jumped out of the way, leaving the Xenomorphs to be destroyed. Arctic Bomber then threw her barrage of Bowling Bombs into the Slave Beast Takas' open mouths, blowing them both up from the inside. The clones' green blood began oozing out of their bodies; they could only groan in agony before dropping dead.

[End BGM]

Arctic resisted the urge to vomit, regardless of the disgusting outcome. "Blech...this is exactly like in _Contra: Shattered Soldier_ - gross, yet there was only one to face that time."

"Now we can leave this uncomfortable episode behind us and move on," agreed Jimbo.

"You said a mouthful, Jim!" added Sully.

[Boss BGM: R.A.V.E. (Contra: Hard Corps)]

Just then, Fire Bomber showed up again. "Not so fast! My fire isn't out yet, fools! Let's go, Master Builder!" He pushed a button on a remote control, summoning a giant skeleton-like robot; he jumped onto its top to pilot it.

"I think I've fought that blue guy before in _Contra: Hard Corps_..." wondered Arctic Bomber. "Didn't take much to figure out I'm supposed to stand on either side of the screen and lock my position, so as to guarantee that he doesn't get very far in building stuff to attack me, or so I was told one time."

"Uh, I hate to break it to you, Arctic," interrupted Lance, "but you can't always rely on a video game to win a battle. Trust me, the same thing happened to me and Bill one time when we fought Evil Pretty Bomber back on Earth during World War III, though we're lucky her desperation move didn't kill us."

"I was just referring to the time Aaron and Ami introduced me to the _Contra_ series ever since we kicked Red Falcon's ass for good, that's all. Geez..."

Fire Bomber broke the conversation by knocking on the wall with his skeletal mech. "Are you finished with your last words yet? Let's go already! Master Builder's dying to build something worthy of taking you down!"

With that said, Master Builder started the battle just outside the elevator by pounding the floor, causing several metal parts to drop in. Then he put the parts together to form a tank, which fired armor-piercing shells without delay. The whole group was injured by the blast, but not bad. Bill and Lance, however, were unable to damage the tank since they lost their Spread Gun and Laser Beam power-ups during the fight against Earth Bomber earlier. Arctic Bomber, on the other hand, had no problem blowing up the tank with her Bowling Bombs, angering Master Builder. He came out of hiding, pounded the floor to summon more metal parts, and put them together to build about ten copies of Earth Bomber.

In the meantime, Jimbo and Sully helped Bill and Lance blast the clones, just as Arctic Bomber unloaded a barrage of Energy Shots via the charged-up Fire Whip to inflict heavy damage on the hiding Master Builder. Once the clones were wiped out, Master Builder got angry again, and summoned more metal parts by pounding the floor. However, before he could even build something else, Arctic's group blew his head off. The entire body shorted out as the arms fell off before detonating in a large explosion, eventually killing Fire Bomber in the process.

[End BGM]

With two Dark Force Bombers dead, the group took the elevator all the way to the top of the main deck, and found Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber getting away in an escape pod. To add insult to injury, they had set the W.R.S. to self-destruct in 10 minutes. Bill, Lance, Arctic, Jimbo, and Sully were forced to retreat all the way back to General Shepherd's spaceship; and escape they did just before the W.R.S. detonated in a nuclear explosion.

"Did you get 'em all?" asked the general.

"Not exactly," answered Jimbo. "Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber got away!"

"But hey, we stopped their project..." commented Jimbo.

"Which we discovered was started by you," added Bill. "Why?"

Shepherd did not react one bit. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Arctic Bomber stepped up and angrily pointed her finger at him. "Don't play dumb, Shepherd! We're on to you! The project being funded by the United States government on both Galuga Island and the W.R.S., and the fact that the 'aliens' somehow knew who we were, and that we were coming, everything! I mean, somebody's gotta be telling those jerk-off clowns to come and kill us, much less in the three sectors! To top it all, I knew right from the start that something was up when you didn't mention Galuga Island or Galuga Archipelago, or whatever the hell the people of Earth call it nowadays, let alone its underground base during that briefing!"

"Why did you do all this?" questioned Lance.

Shepherd sighed in response. "Hmph. No point hiding the truth any longer. I must admit, you were able to escape with your lives...but you know too much. Oh, and the aliens who kidnapped the victims were _my_ soldiers in an organization that I lead: Shadow Company. We wore our clever disguises so that nobody would suspect our real intentions. But now that the deception is over, the time has come to dispose of you. I can't afford to have you around to spread the truth." With a snap from his fingers, the "alien soldiers" came out of hiding and revealed themselves by taking off their disguises.

Jimbo gasped. "What?! Traitor!"

Sully exclaimed, "It was a set-up the whole time!"

Before the group could retaliate, Shepherd's soldiers subdued them, and killed Jimbo and Sully before putting Bill and Lance inside an escape pod. The soldiers then held Arctic hostage on Shepherd's orders, intending for her to watch as Shepherd released the escape pod into space. Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber eventually showed up to dispose of Jimbo and Sully's dead bodies, whereas Shepherd fired a missile at the other escape pod. Arctic could only watch in both fear and anger as the pod was engulfed with a blinding explosion.

[Betrayal BGM: Mission Failed (Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader)]

"BILL! LANCE! NOOOOO!"

"And that leaves us two more Contras to deal with!" blurted Aqua Bomber.

"But not before we return to Earth to kill you, Arctic Bomber!" added Cyclone Bomber.

Arctic Bomber growled angrily at the betrayal, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Grrr...I'M GONNA KILL YOU ALL!"

Shepherd subdued her with a taser, knocking her out instantly. "Save your breath, Arctic. I put you and your friends on the 'mission' with that briefing yesterday in an attempt for my loyal followers from Shadow Company to kill you. But like I said, I didn't expect you to be able to survive all the way, let alone escape alive. We may have sacrificed the Weapons Research Station for nothing, but we have enough of what we need - Super Bombermen and alien Xenomorphs alike - to begin a new era. And I intend for you to see it before you die."

The traitorous general walked back to the cockpit with Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber, while the rest of his men kept Arctic Bomber prisoner. Her interdimensional communicator, left on from the beginning, transmitted a message: _Bill! Lance! Arctic! This is Blaze Bomber! We've all been had! We're under attack by Shepherd's men at the Galuga Archipelago on Earth! Aaron, Ami, do what you can and take out those choppers! Do not trust Shepherd! I say again, do not trust Shepherd! Yuffie, get down!_ An explosion was heard over the communicator, abruptly ending the transmission. One of the soldiers then grabbed Arctic Bomber's communicator, and crushed it with his bare hands.

[End BGM]

* * *

[Boss BGM: Bloody Storm (Contra III: The Alien Wars)]

_Mission 3B: Shepherd's betrayal  
Things have taken a turn for the worse as General Shepherd revealed his true colors: he had plotted the mission as a means of killing us Four Contras, along with Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber, so that he could run our home country and its military unopposed - especially with Shadow Company backing him up.  
On account of betrayal, he was the one who had the kidnapped victims "converted" into his personal army of Super Bombermen, leaving them dead on the inside.  
February 10, 20XX  
5:10 AM_

Not only were we betrayed by General Shepherd, our CrygorCopter was damaged, thanks to Colonel Bassad and his henchmen that attacked us with ten of their helicopters. It would take a while for Blaze Bomber and Yuffie to fix the CrygorCopter and its cockpit, so in the meantime, Ami and I were on our own.

"Everything would've gone so well for all of the United States, if not the entire world!" yelled Bassad. "We would've been successful if it weren't for you nosy adults and that synthetic freak-show you call a Bomberman!"

"His name is Blaze Bomber!" thundered Ami.

"All Contras are to be terminated on sight! I just got word that General Shepherd did away with Bill Rizer and Lance Bean!"

Ami and I gasped in shock. "WHAT?!"

Bassad chuckled deviously. "That's what they get for nosing in on our _private_ data files for Project: ACT ZERO. And I'm gonna kill you!"

"They can't be dead!" I shouted. "I know them...they, along with myself and Ami, aren't that easy to kill."

"...Anyway, like I said just now, we're not gonna let you live!"

The evil colonel and his followers commenced with opening fire on me and Ami, their missiles raining all over the jungle. Due to the intensity, we couldn't activate our 30-hit Konami Barriers like this; sticking with the normal 5-hit barriers was our only option. Fortunately, it was a good thing I kept my Homing Missiles, although I can't expect to inflict any damage since it's likely the helicopters were also reinforced with Super Titanium alloy. Even if I did pick up the Crash Missiles from Blaze Bomber's power-up satchel for my Contra Rifle, it still wouldn't do us any good due to the helicopters being too high for them to reach.

"Aaron, I hope we find the Drill Shot for you to use," worried Ami, "because it's our only chance at taking out the choppers."

"I doubt it. Even if Blaze Bomber had one in store for us, we might not have a chance in hell without getting shot once." Just then, I spotted a nearby anti-air cannon. "Maybe we can use that!"

"Huh. Either we missed it on our last trip here, or Colonel Bassad built some anew. Still, it looks undamaged, let alone functional, so let's give it a try!"

Bassad boomed over his headset, "Don't even think you can stop us with _that, _but I agree with you for once: you don't have a chance in hell at killing us!"

Ami growled. "Care to wager on that, _traitor_?"

Henceforth, Ami and I hijacked the abandoned AA cannon (based on the Flakvierling from World War II), and used its firepower to blast the Shadow Company helicopters threatening to make mincemeat out of us. Since their Super Titanium alloy wasn't concentrated 100 times over like with Red Falcon's killing machines in general, we had no problem reducing their numbers to even the odds. As soon as we were down to 5 more, they eventually blew up the AA cannon, forcing us out. Luckily, we landed next to another abandoned AA cannon, which we used to take out another batch of choppers with only so much time, before Bassad blew it up with his missiles. Fortunately, for us, only 2 of Bassad's helicopters remained in the fray.

"Good thing we had our 5-hit barriers on the whole time," I said.

Ami nodded. "Yep, that way the explosions wouldn't wound us."

"You may have blown up most of my helicopters," uttered Bassad, "but I've destroyed all of the anti-aircraft cannons you can use! Surrender now, and General Shepherd will kill you peacefully."

Then I yelled, "What the hell do you want from us?!"

"Hmm hmm hmm...take a wild guess. Only a few of you possess something that could make our Super Titanium-reinforced technology, including our Super Bombermen, invincible."

Ami pondered the rogue colonel's words momentarily. "I think we've figured it out. It's our holy power, isn't it?"

"Right the first time! We at Shadow Company have been monitoring all of your actions in secrecy, ever since World War III. Just imagine what your power could do for us by the time we extract it...especially from your dead bodies."

"You're wasting your time, Bassad! Only the pure of heart can touch that!"

"Ami's right!" I joined. "So don't expect to get your hands on it without getting rejected!"

We ran around to avoid more gunfire and missiles alike, and finally ran into a power-up pod tossed in our direction by Blaze Bomber, which Bassad's helicopters accidentally shot down. Miraculously, it contained the Drill Shot I needed for the situation at hand. I picked it up for the empty weapon slot on my Contra Rifle, and aimed at the two choppers. Ami distracted them with her Flash Bombs, giving me just enough time to fire my Drill Shots to pierce the choppers. Due to the penetration, especially through the rotors, Bassad's helicopters malfunctioned with a chain of explosions going off; eventually they exploded completely, killing the traitorous colonel and the rest of his crew.

[End BGM]  
[Victory BGM: Stage Clear (Contra 4)]

"That's the last of 'em!" I took a deep breath in relief.

"What a close shave it was!" agreed Ami, wiping some sweat off of her forehead.

[End BGM]

Upon reuniting with Blaze Bomber and the others, we were relieved to see that they just fixed the CrygorCopter, although further repairs were to be taken into account at Crygor Labs in Diamond City. Despite what Colonel Bassad said about Bill and Lance being killed by General Shepherd, Ami and I believed that our two close friends were not dead. They had to have survived somehow...

* * *

Meanwhile, back aboard the spaceship Arctic Bomber is held prisoner in, General Shepherd had made an arrival on Earth via a military base in Nevada known only as Area 51. Then he announced, "Now, our new era begins. Aqua, Cyclone, come with me. The rest of you, do what you want with Arctic Bomber. She knows too much."

With that, he and the two Dark Force Bombers left the spaceship. As soon as they were out of sight, the Shadow Company soldiers pointed their guns at Arctic Bomber. Just then, four of the soldiers changed their minds and opened fire _on her captors_ instead. Arctic Bomber didn't know what was going on when she woke up from unconsciousness, but decided to let out a scream anyway. Outside the ship, General Shepherd heard the gunfire and Arctic's screaming. Thinking his soldiers killed her, he grimaced and walked off with Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber.

Back inside the ship, the remaining four soldiers put their guns away...and revealed themselves - much to Arctic's surprise - as Bill Rizer, Lance Bean, and Privates Jimbo and Sully, in holographic disguises. "Huh? Wh-what? But...but I thought..."

[Reunion BGM: Epilogue - Part 1 (Metroid Fusion)]

"We were dead?" interrupted Bill. "Not really."

"The ones that were next to you earlier were synthetic clones of us." explained Lance.

"Pretty ironic that one of Shadow Company's evil gadgets could be put to good use," commented Jimbo.

"It's a long story, but we'll explain." Upon saying that, Sully allowed Bill to go first.

(BILL, LANCE, JIMBO, AND SULLY'S FLASHBACK)  
[BILL'S WORDS]  
_When we arrived at the top of the main deck only to see Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber escaping, we took a look at something else besides the self-destruct timer...well, while you had panicked and attempted to escape, no offense. Immediately, we made use of a cloning device to create four synthetic copies of us, which you then saw running behind you during the escape._

[LANCE'S WORDS]  
_As soon as the coast was clear, we "borrowed" some holographic belts to disguise ourselves as Shepherd's soldiers. We had to prepare ourselves because we knew from having read the "classified" files on Project: ACT ZERO, that Shepherd would kill us for "violating his privacy." You didn't think you were the only one who's suspicious of his intentions the entire time, did you?_

[JIMBO'S WORDS]  
_Anyway, we followed you and our synthetic clones in secrecy, although we had to move real fast. Fortunately, we were able to make it back to the general's spaceship just before it took off - and yes, before the entire W.R.S. exploded like a freakin' atomic bomb._

[SULLY'S WORDS]  
_In order for our plan to work, we had to stick with the "alien soldiers", by pretending we're on Shepherd's side. That way, see, we make him think he and his goons killed us. We were lucky, however, that he didn't do away with you immediately afterwards..._  
(END FLASHBACK)

Arctic Bomber took a moment to put two and two together on her friends' explanation. "So...lemme get this straight: the Bill, Lance, Jimbo, and Sully that were with me the whole time since the evacuation, were none other than these synthetic duplicates of you, is that right?"

"Yup," Lance answered happily. "You didn't think we'd let a traitorous bastard like him get away with killing us that easily, did you?"

"You can come at the Four Contras," said Sully, "and you can even smash their bones, but you can't break their spirits...or their friends'."

Jimbo smirked. "General Shepherd's gonna be in for a shock, especially when he's learned this lesson the hard way."

"Heh, more like General Bitch-herd. But there's one thing I wanna say..." Arctic then proceeded with slapping her friends' faces, before hugging Bill and Lance warmly. "Don't you EVER do that again without telling me! I thought I'd lost you forever just like we lost Sergeants Mad Dog and Scorpion!"

Bill hushed her affectionately like a caring father. "Shhh, calm down. I'm sorry we scared you, Arctic. There just wasn't the right time to explain without blowing our cover. We had to fool Shepherd into thinking he really got rid of us."

Arctic sighed in relief. "I'm just glad you're all alive."

"I hope Aaron, Ami, and the others made it safely, too," said Lance. "Sorry we let one of Shepherd's henchmen crush your interdimensional communicator."

[End BGM]  
[Departure BGM: Epilogue - Part 2 (Metroid Fusion)]

After the heartfelt reunion, the foursome took their leave for Diamond City to rendezvous with me, Ami, Blaze Bomber, and Yuffie, whilst making sure not to be seen by any of Shepherd's men along the way.

[End BGM]

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

Thanks to their well-thought plans for survival, the Four Contras and their surviving allies, including Yuffie, Blaze Bomber, and Arctic Bomber, aren't dead at all. However, this was but a mere prelude for what's to come as General Sheperd's true colors are revealed.

Oh, and as a side note, here's the part where I mention that I got the general's name from the one in _Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2_. I only brought it up briefly a few chapters earlier, but didn't go into complete detail about his true colors from said game's Campaign mode right away because I didn't want to spoil the details of my story early on.


	6. Dead or alive

Now that General Shepherd has been exposed as the man behind Project: ACT ZERO and the "mysterious kidnappings", he is forced to take extreme measures...even if it obviously means picking up where Colonel Bassad had failed by killing our heroes and their friends in Diamond City.

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 5: Dead or alive

For the next two days since we began a rather suicide mission, we came back to Diamond City - whereas Bill, Lance, Arctic Bomber, Jimbo, and Sully used Shepherd's spaceship to rendezvous with us. Even when we had reunited, our CrygorCopter was in need of further repairs. In fact, we all needed medical help since we were almost killed on both sides.

[Interlude BGM: Rukifellth's Theme (Bomberman 64: The Second Attack!)]

Meanwhile, at Area 51, Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber reported in to General Shepherd. "General, I've just received word from our security guards! Their cameras' footage displayed Arctic Bomber, alongside Bill, Lance, Jimbo, and Sully!"

"WHAT?! But I...we..."

Aqua Bomber pondered his thoughts. "Hmm. I knew something seemed a bit off when Cyclone and I disposed of Jimbo and Sully's dead bodies...oh, crap! Those must have been synthetic clones that Arctic's allies made right under our noses!"

Cyclone Bomber gasped. "And even made use of our Holographic Belts to boot! They tricked us!"

"It seems they're more clever than we thought," said Shepherd. "I better contact Colonel Bassad and see if he managed to kill Aaron and Ami of the Four Contras." He attempted to radio the colonel only to hear nothing but static, and continued, "Great...just great. How do the Contras do it in a pinch?! It's got to be that holy power I've heard so much about, ever since World War III..."

The general turned his attention toward Aqua and Cyclone. "I've heard rumors that their holy power didn't just come from Crygor Labs. The main source is that of the Contras' bloodline. Their ancestors, consisting of two warriors and a wise sage, had that power to banish Red Falcon and his brethren back in 1603. Aaron, Ami, Bill, and Lance are the descendants that carry said bloodline. But, if we were to extract it, and combine it with the alien cell we had salvaged at the time we found you and broke you free of the Blue Crystal prisons...well, just think what it can do for us at Shadow Company - nay, the Blood Falcon organization."

"Then our army of Super Bombermen could become invincible!" determined Aqua Bomber. "But, how are we to pull it off?"

"Yeah," added Cyclone Bomber. "If that power was obviously meant for good, wouldn't we get rejected since we're not pure of heart?"

General Shepherd replied, "It is true that no evil may dare touch it...but not if we have the technology to reverse-engineer all that. Remember, just because we sacrificed our Weapons Research Station doesn't mean our Super Bombermen are no more. Those were merely test subjects as a means of showing what our _real_ soldiers can do, once they don these armorsuits, and that turned out successful. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a broadcast to address to the public..."

[End BGM]

* * *

The following two days had passed. We were back to normal, and the CrygorCopter ready to go. However, Dr. Crygor, Penny, and Blaze Bomber had grave news for us. In fact, all of WarioWare and its close friends - including Cheerful White, Cool Black, Cute Pink, and even Yuffie - were to report at once. Upon our arrival, Penny and Blaze Bomber showed us a news report, broadcast live on TV...

_Good evening, people of America. I, General Shepherd, have grave news to bring you: we were supposed to have defeated the aliens that hijacked our Weapons Research Station in outer space. The Four Contras, of all people, should've been eager to help. But instead, they - along with ex-Hate Bombers Arctic and Blaze - attacked and blew up the station for no reason, and even gained unauthorized access to the classified Area 51. As it turned out, they pose a threat to us all, and themselves as well. In fact, the people at the so-called "WarioWare Inc." were their accomplices._

_But don't fear one bit: we, the people of Shadow Company, now officially known as the Blood Falcon organization, have the technology to bring them down once and for all. While the words "Blood Falcon" may scare you at first, this organization is far different from that of the Red Falcon Empire. We fight for justice, and decimate those who oppose our people of the country, which we live in. Therefore, I am offering a bounty of $1 billion against Aaron, Ami, Bill, Lance, Arctic Bomber, and Blaze Bomber; dead or alive. I know it pains me to do this, but as the world faces a crisis, we cannot afford to have them around._

_Thank you, and good night._

[Alert BGM: Environmental Shock (Metroid Fusion)]

"Why, that two-timing, double-crossing BASTARD!" yelled Jimbo.

"Yeah! How dare he lie to us?!" demanded Sully.

Wario pumped his fists in agreement. "I second that! I played all the way through _Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2_ in its single player campaign. Near the end, General Shepherd revealed his true colors for the evil bastard he really is, firstly by killing Roach and Ghost! Thank goodness John 'Soap' MacTavish killed him in return!"

Arctic Bomber added her two cents, "And what he failed to mention in the broadcast, is that he's got his army of Super Bombermen at his side, and that the 'aliens' were none other than his own men in holographic disguises! He doesn't even give a crap if innocent people died on the outside or inside when he turned them into Master Chief ripoffs!"

"Leave it to him to twist words in a desperate attempt to hide the truth from the media and the people," addressed Blaze Bomber. "However, the one silver lining is we have proof. It's a good thing I kept Penny's digital camera in case of emergency."

Penny nodded. "And I have all the photos you took in secrecy."

"Lance and I got our own photos," commented Bill, "and kept our cameras safe from physical damage."

"Yeah," agreed Lance, albeit worried about the outcome. "But now that Shepherd knows we 'borrowed' his Holographic Belts and made use of our synthetic clones, he's bound to send his entire army of Super Bombermen..."

"In other words," said Yuffie, "to attack and destroy all of Diamond City just to kill us and extract the Four Contras' holy power for their twisted experiments. Shadow Company - I mean, the Blood Falcon organization - doesn't care who they kill as long as they get the profits from all their bio-weapons and stuff. Seriously, this is a new low."

Penny gave a quick briefing on where we're to go from here on out. "Aaron, Ami, and Arctic Bomber, you're to take it to the streets and drive Shepherd's forces out of our fair city. Bill and Lance, you accompany Jimbo and Sully to help the Diamond Police direct all civilians to the nearest emergency shelters possible."

We all nodded in response, with Blaze Bomber announcing, "I'll stay and help Penny address our own broadcast to the civilians. I've said it before, but I'm afraid I'll have to say it again: it's sad that even on Earth, there exists its own forces of Red Falcon in human skin nowadays."

Arctic Bomber sighed painfully. "Right. That selfish general has hit a new low in...how did Kevin put it one time..._dork history_!"

[End BGM]

Henceforth, Penny and Blaze Bomber went with Dr. Crygor to get the broadcast out to Diamond City, via D.E.B.S. (Diamond Emergency Broadcast System). Within minutes, the message was sent out to all active TV monitors, including residential homes: **ALL RESIDENTS OF WARIOWARE INC. ARE INSTRUCTED TO GO DIRECTLY TO CRYGOR LABS / YOUR ATTENTION, PLEASE - EMERGENCY EVACUATION IN PROGRESS / HEAD IMMEDIATELY TO YOUR NEAREST EMERGENCY SERVICE SHELTER. TROOPS WILL BE THERE TO MEET YOU. BRING A PHOTO ID AND NO MORE THAN ONE BAGGAGE ITEM PER PERSON. / BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS. BE ALERT.**

* * *

[Stage BGM: Neo City (Contra 4)]

_Mission 4: The streets of Diamond City  
As of Shepherd's faux broadcast, his army had arrived to attack Diamond City, since it wasn't too far from the classified Area 51. Penny Crygor and Blaze Bomber rush to spread the truth to the city and the rest of America to counter the traitorous general's lies, whereas Bill Rizer and Lance Bean accompany Privates Jimbo and Sully with helping the Diamond Police get all of the innocent civilians to safety.  
Aaron, Ami, and Arctic Bomber, however, are instructed to commence attack on Shepherd's soldiers, rumored to have donned their own "Super Bombermen" armorsuits for the oncoming invasion.  
February 11, 20XX  
9:40 PM_

Arctic, Ami, and I ran across the bridge to get back into the city itself. Along the way, we thought back to all the evidence we saw, regarding Project: ACT ZERO. The "Super Bombermen" that we fought were intended to test the armorsuits' weapons and capabilities, despite that it required turning innocent victims into brain-dead killers; in other words, all they knew were their own existence. Now that Shepherd's plans were successful, he was ready to arm all of his soldiers with said armorsuits, intent on destroying Diamond City just to kill us.

The moment we came across the Super Bombermen, we blasted them with our holy-powered weapons (and the sophisticated assault rifle Arctic stole from one of Shepherd's dead soldiers), and found not a moment too soon: they were indeed Shepherd's men. But what shocked us was, according to Blaze Bomber's scanning device, that they were injected with a mixture of an alien cell and anabolic steroids.

The ex-Hate Bomber groaned, "Ugh. Are they seriously messing with what used to belong to Red Falcon? As if the cloned Xenomorphs weren't bad enough already...But, I'm armed to the teeth like they are with one of their assault rifles. From what I found with Bill and the others, these specialized guns carry three different weapons at once, a-la _Contra: Shattered Soldier_. Machine Gun, Flamethrower, and the 'Diver Mines'...but I'm sure you fellas already know that from said game. Anyway, we've got an army of _steroid-induced_ Super Bombermen to pulverize!"

"Guys, there are a few tanks approaching!" Ami warned, while the tanks' cannons alternated between firing Energy Shots and Diver Mines.

"Shouldn't be too much of a threat," I said to her, "considering we faced that one tank in _Contra 4_."

Despite the enemy tanks' efforts to decimate us, I still had my Drill Shot (and Homing Missiles) for penetrating through the armor. Combining just that with the Fire Whip's charge shot on Arctic Bomber's gun, we blew the tanks to pieces. This was merely the beginning, for we had yet to get to the root of the invasion. For now, Ami and I readied our 30-hit Konami Barriers with our "Konami Code" incantation while Arctic Bomber covered us. The moment we ran towards Mona Pizza, we were attacked by a giant mechanical spider which crawled downwards from the roof. It shot out a deadly rain of bullets, followed by a laser beam. We were hit, but not bad beyond the loss of my Drill Shot and having to switch to my Homing Missiles.

"Let me guess: that giant spider is also from _Contra 4_, right?" Ami and I nodded in response to Arctic Bomber's question.

The spider did not stay on the walls of Mona Pizza for long. It jumped down in an attempt to crush us; we merely swerved out of the way. Then the spider launched a barrage of missiles from its mechanical legs, which Ami froze with her Ice Bombs. Penny and Blaze Bomber sent us two power-up pods from Crygor Labs, shooting them down to reveal the Ice Breath and Laser Beam power-ups. Knowing that the Diver Mines' "charge shot" on Arctic Bomber's gun consists of homing missiles, I decided to replace my own with the Ice Breath, while putting the Laser Beam in my Contra Rifle's empty weapon slot. Then the giant spider mech unleashed its artillery of missiles, bullets, and laser beams all around Mona Pizza's parking lot, just barely missing us. While drawing its fire, Ami and I inflicted damage on the giant spider mech's head. Then Arctic Bomber finished things up by throwing her Bowling Bomb at the mech, eventually setting off a chain reaction around its body that caused it to explode into a pile of scrap metal.

"I'd say that king-sized spider mech was just squished," I commented.

Ami smiled in relief. "Heh. Amen to that, Aaron! Spiders scare me..."

Suddenly, a giant attack ship flew by, firing four blue laser beams in our direction. We merely avoided getting vaporized, and managed to recognize it as a "BigCore MK-I" warship from the _Gradius_ games. It was the first in a series of "BigCore" warships, each housing a blue core in the center. Usually, the cores within were guarded by barrier-like panels, which were easy to penetrate through. That's when I made good use of my Laser Beam, while backed up by Arctic Bomber's currently-selected Machine Gun on her rifle, to blast away the barrier panels protecting the BigCore's blue core. It kept firing laser shots and flying around, just barely missing us, until Arctic and I blew up its core. A chain of explosions went off all over the BigCore, and then it exploded entirely.

Arctic Bomber took a deep breath. "Well...that's that! I take it Shepherd and his merry men are also playing with the Gradius bosses."

"When it comes to Area 51 - and I don't mean the on-rails shooter game itself - expect the unexpectable."

"Which means there's likely to be more Gradius bosses that we'll have to face, if we ever get to Area 51 alive..."

Although we managed to wipe out the more dangerous threats to Diamond City, we had only scratched the surface. We could not hold off the Super Bombermen forever. In fact, it was only a matter of time before they would bring forth a large enough BigCore-like mech to take out the entire city. Come to think of it, we might need the CrygorCopter or preferably the Contra Cruiser since it's technically impossible to destroy such a large, metallic behemoth on foot.

[End BGM]

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

The sudden appearance of one of the familiar enemy warships from _Gradius_ indicates something big is coming, and not just General Shepherd's personal army.


	7. Destroy the cores!

The arrival - and destruction - of the BigCore MK-I had signaled the existence of the next step in General Shepherd's plan: to unleash as many of these warships on the city as possible. His reason seemed beyond our heroes' comprehension at first, though Arctic Bomber thought otherwise. Now the Contras must stop the destruction of their hometown while their friends redirect innocent civilians to safety as instructed...

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 6: Destroy the cores!

Thirty minutes had passed since we began our mission to drive General Shepherd's forces out of Diamond City. But even then, we were only able to scratch the surface of the invasion, for its source had yet to come. Ever since we encountered - and destroyed - a certain warship one might recognize from the _Gradius_ games, we deduced the possibility that Shepherd had gone insane with power. It just wasn't possible that a certain classified base like Area 51 could house a "BigCore" warship or two, but then again, said base is well-known for keeping unnaturally hi-tech weaponry as "experimental" in this world, no matter how alien they appear to be in public eyes.

Because of that, Area 51 is highly protected with radar stations that detect unauthorized personnel, mainly civilian and normal military air traffic alike. Those who would stumble upon the base, intentional or not, are quickly expelled without mercy. In our case, Bill and his group were detected by the base's security, but they were lucky to have escaped aboard Shepherd's ship just before the armed forces wiped them out. Had they stuck around without waiting for me, Ami, and the others, they'd be dead before they could even reach the traitorous general himself. After all, we'd need a plan if we are to take back the base and return alive. That's not the only problem, though; to invade such a classified base just to take out those kinds of warships inside would be to risk getting ourselves branded as criminals. Either way, we have no choice. We have to get inside Area 51 in order to shut down Project: ACT ZERO once and for all, or else the destruction would spread beyond Diamond City.

[Meeting BGM: Mission Ahead (Star Wars Rogue Squadron)]

"We were lucky the BigCore warship we destroyed was the weakest in its respective series of 'BigCore' warships," I began.

"It's possible there are bound to be more powerful variations of the BigCore," pondered Ami. "But there's one thing that puzzles me: where did Shepherd get that kind of attack ship?"

Blaze Bomber thought for a moment. "From what I saw in Ken the Reporter's live footage on the Diamond News Network, that technology is too advanced. It could only have existed at some point in the future, or perhaps from another world or dimension..."

Bill thought back to what he, Lance, and Arctic had discovered in outer space. "I'll bet General Shepherd must have used the W.R.S. to bring in those kinds of advanced craft. I've read on the Internet that there exists a distant planet similar to ours and planet Bomber; only they call it the planet Gradius."

Lance stopped his buddy momentarily. "Wait, wasn't that the one that's usually attacked by the evil Bacterion forces? So far, the only ship capable of destroying their BigCore technology was the Vic Viper."

"Phoebe and I have probably played some _Gradius_ games on the earlier Nintendo systems before, but we haven't really gotten that far..." Despite feeling ashamed at how difficult _Gradius_ was to beat, let alone master, 9-Volt shrugged it off while Phoebe patted his back.

"Me neither, but hey, we're both practicing to be better, right?"

"Yeah," agreed Ana. "Coming from Konami, those games were tough - mainly since you get sent back to an earlier point in a level everytime you lose a life. Not to mention the fact that two players take turns, was it?"

Ami nodded. "There are about a couple of these games which let two people play simultaneously: _Lifeforce_, also known as _Salamander_ in Japan, _Gradius Gaiden_, and even _Gradius V_."

"_Gradius Gaiden_, huh?" wondered Phoebe. "We never got to play this game before."

"It's because it was released only in Japan and nowhere else at the time," replied Ami.

"Oh, okay," said 9-Volt.

Then Kat questioned, "Wait, if the Vic Viper's the only ship that can blow up these giant ships, then what chance would we have?"

[End BGM]  
[Briefing BGM: Stage Select (Bomberman 64: The Second Attack!)]

At this, Penny directed our attention towards the CrygorCopter. "Our CrygorCopter _can_ take on anything Shepherd can throw at us. It's just that...well, unlike the Vic Viper, it doesn't have any of...um, what were they called again? I know it's small, oval-shaped, and orange-"

Blaze Bomber interrupted, "They're called 'Options', or commonly Multiples. But either way, our chopper has powerful enough technology, courtesy of Crygor Labs. It doesn't just have the two cannons, force field, and souped-up armor. We actually installed twin plasma laser cannons up front. We're just glad they weren't totaled when Colonel Bassad attacked us the other night."

"So what are we waiting for?" asked Mona.

"Yeah!" exclaimed Wario. "Who knows what other 'BigCore' ships General Shepherd has in store?"

I suggested in response, "Ami and I are gonna fly the CrygorCopter, directly to Area 51. I was thinking the Contra Cruiser would be the best option at first, but since the CrygorCopter doesn't have autopilot, we may have to save the former for when absolutely necessary."

"You may be right on that, Aaron," said Blaze Bomber. "If anything were to happen to the Contra Cruiser along the way, we might not be able to return alive."

Yuffie gasped at the thought. "But it's suicide! No one can get to Area 51 without getting blown out of the sky!"

Ami reassured, "Don't worry, Yuffie. Aaron and I already trained with Bill and Lance to be able to fly a helicopter aside from our Contra Cruiser."

Bill turned his attention toward me and Ami, albeit with regret. "Lance and I could come with you, but somebody's gotta stay and drive the rest of the steroid-induced Super Bombermen out of Diamond City. Rest assured, we'll always be together in each other's hearts. Don't let General Shepherd's lies besmirch you. The six of us, including Blaze Bomber and Arctic Bomber, know who we are, and how we live our lives dictates who we are. Remember what Lance and I told you one time after we ended World War III: we're not outcasts if we risk our lives fighting for our ideals. We're true heroes...We are Contras."

"I know, old buddy," I responded gratefully. "I know..."

Then Lance said, "So for right now, we're both letting Blaze and Arctic temporarily take our places as part of the Four Contras for the one-way trip to Area 51."

Arctic Bomber felt surprised and confused. "Huh? Whaddya mean?"

Dr. Crygor explained, "What Bill and Lance are saying, is that you and Blaze have done so much to help us defeat the evil forces of Red Falcon. And now, you've proven yourselves worthy of fighting for freedom and justice as the Contras. Aaron, Ami, Blaze, and Arctic...you're our last hope. Now go save us."

[End BGM]

* * *

[Fight BGM: BigCore MK-II (Gradius V)]

_Mission 5: Attack of the BigCores  
Bill and Lance have officially allowed Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber to take their places alongside Aaron and Ami as the Four Contras, whereas they volunteered to assist Cheerful White, Cool Black, Cute Pink, Yuffie, Jimbo, Sully, and everyone at WarioWare Inc. (9-Volt, Phoebe, Kat, and Ana included) in helping the Diamond Police destroy the rest of the alien cell-and-steroid-induced Super Bombermen.  
Meanwhile, more powerful variations of the "BigCore" approach the city to commence eradication. Since the Vic Viper did not originate on Earth, only the CrygorCopter can destroy these metallic behemoths.  
February 11, 20XX  
10:15 PM_

Clear for takeoff, Ami and I took Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber to the starry-night skies of Diamond City aboard our CrygorCopter. Not a moment too soon, three more BigCore warships had arrived, each being more powerful than the "MK-I" variation. These warships consisted of MK-II, MK-III, and MK-IV; the first to attack us was the BigCore MK-II (which first showed up in _Gradius II_). Larger than the MK-I variation, it had red streaks instead of yellow, and possessed two cores instead of one. It started its attack pattern by opening up to reveal two cores, and shot out a total of ten blue lasers up front instead of the usual four. Only with our skillful flying were we able to maneuver around the laser shots to avoid getting vaporized. Then it thrust forth like a battering ram and zipped by, just barely missing us.

Afterwards, the BigCore MK-II returned to its original position to spin rapidly and fire its lasers randomly. Arctic and Blaze could not get a clear shot with our cannonball launchers (with the Bowling Bombs for ammunition), leaving it up to me and Ami to utilize our twin plasma laser cannons to break open the barrier panels protecting the cores. We were barely grazed by one of the stray shots, but thankfully, the CrygorCopter's force field absorbed the hit. The BigCore MK-II closed its sides again, and tilted a bit to face us before opening up for the third time. We avoided the laser barrage some more, and managed to take out the bottom core, causing the warship's bottom side to stop working. Only its top half would fire the lasers, but we were quick to destroy the barrier panels and the top core before it attempted to ram us for the second time (obviously, a non-functioning side of the BigCore MK-II meant a bigger ramming space like in _Gradius V_).

As soon as the BigCore MK-II's sides blew off and detonated, it exploded into nothingness. Next up, was the BigCore MK-III (first seen in _Gradius III_; nicknamed "QB2B" in the SNES version). It was about the size of the predecessor we just blew up, only it looked a little different, and had _three_ cores to destroy now. It opened up and shot two large lasers out of its wings, followed by firing two reflective lasers out of its inner body, that bounces off of the giant lasers in a "V" formation. Ami and I carefully directed our CrygorCopter just in-between the reflective "V" lasers, and opened fire on the barrier panels to expose the two frontal cores - all while backed up by our cannon fire.

We only had enough time to blow up one core before the BigCore MK-III closed its wings; it then fired four lasers and attempted to ram us down a-la _Gradius V_. Despite getting slammed by surprise, our CrygorCopter wasn't badly damaged, let alone its rotors. As soon as we regained our balance from the impact, the BigCore MK-III opened its wings again for another barrage of giant and reflective lasers alike; this time, we made certain to blow up the other frontal core, thus taking out the outer part of its inner hull. Although we no longer had to worry about reflective lasers, the mini lasers being shot out like a machine gun were to be taken into account. Its wings, on the other hand, fired homing lasers aimed at us. We redirected the BigCore MK-III so its homing lasers did not damage the buildings below, upon missing us. As soon as the warship stopped firing the homing lasers, we blew open the rest of the barrier panels and destroyed the final core, causing the BigCore MK-III's wings to break off and explode. A few seconds later, its main body detonated in a large explosion.

[End BGM]  
[Boss BGM: Stage Boss (Gradius Gaiden)]

"Whew! That was close!" I blurted.

Ami nodded. "I second that! But, we're not out of the hot water yet."

An even larger warship, known in _Gradius V_ as the BigCore MK-IV, approached us. It appeared more than ready to deal out plenty of destruction to Diamond City, much to Arctic Bomber's surprise. "Oh, crap! I only got up to that thing before I ran out of lives and continues, in _Gradius V_! And to think I was just getting started..."

Blaze Bomber called out to us, "Keep your wits about you, everyone! That BigCore looks powerful enough to obliterate the entire city!"

With _four_ cores to take out this time, the BigCore MK-IV was perhaps the most powerful in its standard BigCore series. Its wing-like arms were detachable, yet still able to shoot. It commenced just that and shot out waving energy beams. Luckily, we were in-between their lines of fire so the arms did not slam us backwards. Then it sent out giant plasma balls, we could not maneuver them. However, we recognized them as shrinkable from the actual game, so long as we continuously shot them. Doing just that gave us room to fly through, and blow open the barrier panels protecting the two cores on the BigCore MK-IV's main body. Sooner or later, small plasma balls came out of the detachable wings to travel along the waving energy beams to fire small lasers upwards and downwards. We were hit, but not bad. Unfortunately, the force field on our chopper was about to wear off if hit again; we needed to be more careful throughout the entire fight.

"The homing lasers are coming out!" warned Blaze Bomber. "We can't let them damage the buildings in the city upon missing us!"

Dodging a lot of laser shots was one thing, but having to redirect the homing lasers away from the city below at the same time was easier said than done. Thankfully, our days of helicopter training paid off, thus enabling us to avoid all of the laser beams. We managed to take out the two cores on the warship's main body during the crossfire, but the rest of the cores were on its detachable arms. Said arms detached again for another round of waving energy beams and giant plasma balls. Making certain not to bump into the deadly balls, we positioned our CrygorCopter carefully towards the core on the top wing. We shot open the barrier panels, and unloaded enough plasma of our own to take out the core. Then we did the same for the core on the bottom wing, dodging the small plasma balls and their mini lasers in the process.

Finally, after such an intense dogfight, we had totaled all four cores on the BigCore MK-IV. A chain of explosions went off all over the warship, its detachable wing-like arms breaking off and exploding a few moments later. Eventually, the last of the BigCores erupted in a massive, blinding explosion, with us just barely out of the blast radius. We all breathed a sigh of relief, happy that we saved Diamond City from a fate worse than a nuclear meltdown.

[End BGM]

Now all that was left for us to do, was to fly directly to Area 51, and to be prepared for a possible boss rush against any other Core-style warships that the Blood Falcon organization might have salvaged from another dimension, some time ago...

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

Onward to Area 51 the heroic Contras go! Since it's likely Shepherd still has more stolen BigCore warships salvaged within the classified base itself, they must prepare themselves as they had already been through worse.


	8. Old foes die hard

Their hometown's destruction averted, the Contras head off to Area 51 while the other allies continue their mission to keep the innocent civilians alive, along with themselves since it's very likely that General Shepherd's men are fixated on the $1 billion bounty.

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 7: Old foes die hard

[Stage BGM: Urban Warfare I (Contra: Legacy of War)]

_Mission 6A: Urban Warfare  
With Diamond City's mass destruction averted, Aaron and Ami lead Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber directly to the forbidden Area 51 itself within Nevada, via the CrygorCopter. Even though the rest of the standard BigCore warships had been destroyed, the Blood Falcon organization had more in store.  
Speaking of which, the $1 billion bounty that General Shepherd mentioned in his faux broadcast, did not go unheard to the ears of criminals and convicted felons alike...  
February 11, 20XX  
10:35 PM_

Meanwhile, back on the war-torn streets of Diamond City, Bill and Lance's group fought hard to eliminate the Super Bombermen...when suddenly, motorcycles came roaring in to the fray; each of which were driven by mohawk-haired punks - ranging from Caucasian to Hispanic - in their early 30s. Immediately, Bill and Lance recognized them as a once-feared gang throughout California, if not the entire country of America. 5 years ago, at some point after the Alien Wars, the all-male mohawk punks (calling themselves the "Killer Mohawks") made a living in a run-down area outside of Diamond City, known only as Silver Slum. With the exception of their leader, who called himself the "Mohawk King", they originally had normal hair before shaving them as part of a ritual to perfectly match the leader's mohawk hair. Any rival gang that lived there had feared the Killer Mohawks, especially due to the horrifying crimes they've committed across 100 schools - elementary, intermediate, and high school alike - stationed in the following cities within California besides Diamond City: San Francisco, Oakland, and even Los Angeles. Though the dangerous punks attacked said schools, they mostly preferred vandalizing elementary schools and harassing its students because - in both their minds and eyes - it brought them joy, going so far as to claim that if they suffer, everybody else who _wasn't_ in the gang would all feel the same in due time. Ever since Silver Slum became run-down, the Killer Mohawks went on a crime spree across said schools in hopes of scaring the governor into turning the entire state itself over to them, lest they kill the students. Not even the rival gangs of Silver Slum would dare step outside their run-down apartments without the risk of getting shot dead.

The Killer Mohawks managed to pull off their heist within a week, thus striking fear in the hearts of students, teachers, and parents alike. The surviving victims could not sleep at night without worrying that the crooks would break in and slit their throats. Even the police had trouble with those felons; however, that didn't go unnoticed when Mona got word about it, especially from 9-Volt and his mom 5-Volt. She immediately took action and called Bill Rizer and Lance Bean to come to Diamond City's rescue for the second time as of the Alien Wars. In fact, she was glad to have given them a pair of "Warp Pipe Whistles", said to have been manufactured in the Mushroom Kingdom for years, in case of trouble. That way, fast travel was possible for Bill and Lance, so they had more time to protect Mona and 9-Volt from the Killer Mohawks before it was too late.

A 2-on-100 fight between the two Contras and the criminals sounded like a no-win situation to the good guys at first, but thanks to their fighting skills and the experience they had during the Alien Wars against Red Falcon and his alien associates, they were able to defeat and detain the Killer Mohawks before any of the students and teachers were killed. The felons were eventually put on trial, found guilty on the counts of attempted murder (on students, teachers, parents, and police officers alike), arson, vandalism, and evading arrest; and hauled off with no chance of parole, to Neo Alcatraz Island: a successor to the now-tour-friendly Alactraz Island (which is located in the San Francisco Bay). More importantly, albeit miraculously, nobody was killed.

Nowadays, and yet for some reason, the Killer Mohawks had broken out of Neo Alcatraz Island to lay waste on Diamond City and its schools, with Bill and Lance on their kill list.

"I know these scumbags," noted Bill, "and they sure look pissed."

"Me too, ol' buddy," added Lance. "But, how'd they get out?"

"Neo Alcatraz Island was supposed to be the maximum security prison in Diamond City's history," explained Young Cricket.

"Still, what they did back then was lower than low," Ashley said dryly.

5-Volt wiped a tear from her eyes, fearing what might have happened had Bill and Lance not come to the rescue at that time. "Especially the fact that they were fixated on killing every last family in the city as a warning to those who might oppose them...including me and my only son..."

The Caucasian thug, calling himself the Mohawk King, shouted aloud, "Hey, puke-heads! Where are yer stinkin' butt-buddies, Aaron, Ami, Arctic Bomber, and Blaze Bomber? Y'know, the ones who are worth a billion bucks along with these..." He paused for a moment to glare at Bill and Lance. "...two assholes who detained us 5 years ago!"

One of his henchmen nodded in agreement, walking next to the leader. "Yeah! General Shepherd promised us a pardon from all the charges against us, for such an easy job!"

Then the other punk standing beside his boss said, "When we're through, we'll be rich beyond our wildest dreams! We'll become billionaires!"

Finally, the third punk stepped forth to hammer the point further. "You don't know nothin' about General Shepherd's true plans! He promised to even make us invincible!"

"Blech!" Wario exclaimed in disgust. "Why would a military organization wanna hire a bunch of _convicted felons_ just to kill us?! Those freakin' cowards!"

"Leave here at once," Mona warned coldly. "You've got no chance to win."

"Shut up, bitch!" bellowed the Mohawk King. "Things ain't gonna be the same as last time! Obviously, _somebody_ had to be telling Bill and Lance to come all the way here and ruin our plans! I dunno how they got here that fast, but they beat us! And now, we're gonna pay them back, along with the rest of ya, tenfold! You hear me, Bill and Lance?! You may have robbed us of our chance to off those wusses back then, but tonight, we ain't passing up the offer on account of the $1 billion bounty on your heads! That's a lotta money, y'know..."

While the so-called "king" was talking, some of his followers glanced over to 9-Volt, Phoebe, Kat, Ana, Cheerful White, Cool Black, and Cute Pink. "You kiddies hear what the big boss just said?" asked one of the punks maliciously. "Heh heh heh, that's right...We're gonna kill ya!"

Yuffie gasped upon hearing that, and got angry just as the other punk added, "Colonel Bassad may not have blown yer best pals all the way to hell, but you won't escape! DIE!"

The teen ninja snapped at this point. "What...did...YOU...JUST...SAY?!"

"We said, we're gonna-" Before the mohawk-haired punk could finish his sentence, Yuffie swift-kicked him in-between his legs, causing him to wince in pain. Then she grabbed him for a shoulder throw, knocking him and his fellow mates to the ground. Afterwards, she walked back with a huff.

"Whoa, right in the jewels!" commented Jimbo.

"You got that right, Jim," said Sully. "Now it's our turn!"

The Mohawk King wasn't about to let up on his chance at the bounty. "Grrr...you puke-heads are gonna pay for that! C'mon, boys! Our $1 billion reward is at stake!"

"Don't you guys know what you're doing?" asked Dribble.

Spitz agreed, albeit scared. "Yeah! Taking lives for the sake of greed..."

"In other words, what do you want with money, anyway?" questioned Ashley.

Lance nailed the point home with his own two cents, "You're just a bunch of psychos who have latched onto an excuse to kill people, and who are so stupid, they don't even realize they're being used by General Shepherd!"

The Mohawk King arrogantly denied Lance's words. "The mistake you and Billy-boy made, was buttin' in on our scheme of the century!"

"The Killer Mohawks, along with Shepherd and his personal army, are evil," said Bill. "We Contras destroy evil."

"Yer goody-two-shoes attitude annoys me. We're owed an apology, and we WILL have it!"

"You're the ones who owe the _schools you've assaulted_ an apology!" shouted Yuffie.

"Hey, chill out, lady. We just wanna return the favor, that's all..."

The gang leader got out a lead pipe and swung away, just barely missing Yuffie. Due to her fast reflexes, the Mohawk King could not even score a single hit on her. He growled in annoyance and threw his pipe at her, only for it to be kicked right back, resulting in a hard blow to the Mohawk King's gut. He immediately got out an MP5 machine gun (stolen from one of the prison guards), and his followers did the same with their own. That's when Bill, Lance, Jimbo, Sully, Ashley, and Young Cricket stepped in to assist Yuffie, let alone return fire. In the meantime, they'd also help the Diamond Police chase off the Super Bombermen, despite a few police officers being gunned down during the firefight. Even Cheerful White, Cool Black, and Cute Pink got into the action by blasting the alien-cell-and-steroid-induced soldiers with their bombs, feeling disgusted that said soldiers are giving the _Bomberman_ franchise a bad name. As for the Killer Mohawks, their heinous acts, in addition to using the stolen MP5s in an effort to kill people, had reached a certain point in which deadly use of force is authorized.

"You guys cover me and Lance while we ready our 30-hit Konami Barriers!" ordered Bill.

"We're on it!" acknowledged Wario. "Those Killer Mohawks are asking for an ass-whooping, thinking they can get away with killing people in MY city!"

"I'll help 9-Volt, Phoebe, Kat, and Ana," Mona told Bill and Lance. "Just be careful!"

"Right. Okay, Lance: Up, up, down, down!"

"Left, right, left, right!"

Then the two Contras shouted in unison: "B, A, Select, and Start!" Upon finishing up, their holy-powered M16 machine guns had generated the barriers around their bodies.

Afterwards, Lance glanced over to the self-proclaimed king himself. "Alright, Mohawk King...are you scumbags ready for round two?"

"You two have shattered our dreams of ruling this pathetic city for the last time! But, we won't need to once we get our billion bucks. We can buy it instead, _then_ persuade the governor to grant us the right to run the whole state of California from the comforts of his office building. Boys, show them exactly why we deserve the huge bounty on their heads!"

"You'll earn nothing from your terrible deeds," shouted 5-Volt, "for I am no ordinary mother!"

While the rematch was going on, some of the punks headed towards 9-Volt, Phoebe, Kat, and Ana, ready to do away with their lives. Fearing for his life, 9-Volt quickly pulled out an enchanted crystal ball that Yuffie gave him 5 months ago, chanting the words she taught him to bring her forth to his side. Though it wasn't really necessary to do that since she was close by, he didn't want to die at a place like this. Yuffie felt the same way he did, and in return cast Protect on him and the other three allies to reduce the damage by half. All the while, Kat and Ana swung away with their katanas to deflect all oncoming gunshots. On the other hand, 9-Volt smashed a punk's head with his skateboard, while assisted by 5-Volt who summoned Shiva to freeze more of them with Diamond Dust, preventing them from ganging up on her son and his friends. Only a few of the punks survived the attack to keep on going, whereas Phoebe borrowed Mona's bowling ball to use as a makeshift boxing glove, despite having to hold it with two hands since it weighed 12 pounds (or 5.44 kilograms). Since Mona named it the Fire Ball, Phoebe gave the illusion of a fire punch by smashing the punk's face - whilst keeping her grip on the ball's finger holes with her other hand so she wouldn't accidentally drop it - thus knocking him out before he could even choke her best friend to death.

Afterwards, she and 9-Volt got back to 5-Volt, Kat and Ana for Mona to follow up with an uppercut to the other unfrozen punk's jaw. Then she performed a spin kick, a move taught to her by Young Cricket and Master Mantis one time, sending him sprawling toward the punk who was already knocked out. Meanwhile, the Mohawk King's comrades broke free of the ice to resume fire, only to ran out of ammo and having to reload their machine guns, thus giving Kat and Ana the opportunity to throw their explosive shurikens at them. While the blasts dealt good damage, they didn't exactly kill the punks. Yuffie's explosive shurikens, on the other hand, were more powerful; she threw just that to kill them, thus saving 9-Volt, Phoebe, Kat, and Ana.

"Thanks, Yuffie!" said 9-Volt.

Yuffie smiled warmly. "Don't mention it, sweetie. Just doing my job as your bodyguard!"

Phoebe joined in, "I don't mean to brag, but you should've seen me in action!"

"We're not out of the woods yet," warned Mona. "There are still more thugs in the fray."

"I hope Bill and Lance still have their 30-hit barriers active," worried 5-Volt. "We can't afford to suffer like my husband did."

As Bill and Lance ran around to shield everyone from the gunshots with their Konami Barriers, Ashley and Young Cricket got into the act of fighting as a team. The witch-in-training used her magic attacks from her wand, whereas Young Cricket performed the famed Cyclone Kick, learned from the Lee twins (Billy and Jimmy of the "Double Dragons") long ago, dispatching more of the Killer Mohawks in the process. Ashley cast Fire on some of the punks, sending them screaming in agony before they dropped dead on the ground. With about 20 gang members left, the Mohawk King had had enough. He stopped firing his MP5, and pulled out a sophisticated, blue-colored grenade. Wario immediately recognized it as the deadly "Plasma Grenade" from the _Halo_ games, for it was known to stick onto personnel and vehicle alike, but not on the environment or its owner. Either way, anything caught within ground zero at the point of detonation, be it flesh, metal, or otherwise, is instantly vaporized.

[End BGM]  
[Danger BGM: Hurry! Hurry! (Final Fantasy V)]

"Freeze, assholes! I've got a live Plasma Grenade! If you puke-heads try to take me in, yer all gonna be fish-bait! I'll do it, man! I'll do it!"

Everyone on both opposing factions stopped what they were doing, and glanced over to the Mohawk King. Thus, Yuffie panicked, "Oh, crap! I think we've had it!"

Despite the death threat, Bill thought otherwise. "We're not licked yet. Ashley, your Thunder spell!"

"Say no more," responded Ashley, casting Thunder around the Killer Mohawks. "There. That should do the trick."

The Mohawk King, however, didn't feel like he was fazed one bit. "What? You only gave us a bad hair day, but it doesn't matter."

A bad hair day it might have been at first, but Lance explained the reason, "The Thunder spell did more than just that. Its namesake bolt, like Ami's Thunder Bombs, actually scrambles enemy machinery and sophisticated weapons alike, including high-tech grenades."

"You mean to tell me that...ah, screw it! Yer dead-meat!" The Mohawk King threw the Plasma Grenade anyway, only for it to remain glued on his hand.

"Oh, I get it!" summarized Wario. "Ashley's Thunder spell scrambled the Plasma Grenade's internal mechanism; that way, it sticks to its owner immediately after it's primed!"

The enemy leader gasped in shock. "WHAT?! AAAHH! Get it off me! GET IT OFF!" The good guys got out of the impending blast radius, but the Killer Mohawks attempted to get the now-burning grenade off. "Quick, somebody get rid of it before it-"

[End BGM]

Before the sadistic leader could finish his sentence, the Plasma Grenade exploded in his hand, completely vaporizing him in addition to all of his followers. In the meantime, the Super Bombermen, realizing they're on the brink of defeat, got out their bio-bombs and primed them for detonation. They ran towards Bill and Lance's group for a suicide bombing run, much to everyone's disgust. 9-Volt, Phoebe, Kat, and Ana got on his skateboard to safety, throwing a few shurikens at the corrupt soldiers to set off the bio-bombs prematurely before said soldiers could even get within range of taking the innocent lives with them. The ensuing chain of explosions killed the last of Shepherd's invading forces instantly, finally freeing Diamond City of total destruction despite the minor damage and a few injuries along the way.

* * *

"Whew! That was freakin' intense, if I say so myself!" Wario commented.

"Yep, but we all did it together, as a team," said Mona.

"We've got the bad guys on the run!" beamed Cheerful White.

"The Killer Mohawks' own evil had doomed them to fail," added Cool Black.

Cute Pink closed her eyes momentarily in relief, despite the hellish battle that she and her friends had experienced tonight. "More importantly, we saved a lot more than we had lost tonight."

[Relief BGM: Rydia (Final Fantasy IV)]

Henceforth, the group returned to the emergency shelters to check up with Penny, Dr. Crygor, and Mike, who had stayed behind to keep the civilians safe and sound. They were grateful that Bill and Lance sacrificed their Konami Barriers to help prevent further injuries, much less anymore casualties. All they had left to do was hope for our safe return from Area 51, for they prayed that Arctic Bomber, Blaze Bomber, Ami, and I made it in there alive. As soon as they arrived inside one of the shelters, 9-Volt and Phoebe were expressing guilt for having put their own lives at risk to help kill the Killer Mohawks and the Master Chief look-alikes themselves. Even Kat and Ana felt the same way, despite being trained as ninjas.

Taking off his helmet, 9-Volt was the first to speak up since the group's arrival at the emergency shelter, trying his best but failing miserably not to cry. "Guys, I know the four of us are only children, and..."

Phoebe hushed him soothingly with a warm hug. "Shhh, it's okay, 9-Volt. We've nothing to blame but ourselves."

"We're sorry we almost got killed," said Kat, "even when Ana and I had our ninja skills to assist 9-Volt and Phoebe."

"I mean, sure, Cheerful White and Cute Pink are also kids, like us, but..." Ana was at a loss for words as she shed some tears from her eyes, but 9-Volt was able to pick up where she had left off.

"We couldn't just stand back and do nothing; not when the Killer Mohawks were mostly fixated on Bill and Lance...a-and don't be mad at me, mom. My friends and I couldn't stand to see everybody else suffer anymore..." He hung his head in shame, but 5-Volt enveloped him in a protective hug as she kissed his forehead.

"I'm not mad at you or Phoebe, 9-Volt..." she whispered tenderly. "I'm letting it slide because we were _all_ involved in that battle tonight. We just need to be more careful next time as we face the bad along with the good. Let's be thankful for what Bill and Lance did to help protect us."

18-Volt sighed in relief. "I...I'm just glad you're all okay. I was afraid I'd lost you and your best friend as my Player 1 and Player 3!"

Jimmy added his two cents, "Don't blame yourselves for this mess...even though it was actually a _dangerous_ one. You three, along with White and Pink, did what you had to do to help save us."

"Jimmy's right," agreed Dribble. "When Bill and Lance used their Konami Barriers to shield our bodies, we've managed to save a lot more than we had lost tonight."

"Those five officers who gave their lives, were good men..." Spitz paused in mid-sentence to shed a tear or two from his eyes.

As soon as the conversation was over, Penny took note of the current situation at hand. "With most of General Shepherd's 'Super Bombermen' wiped out, the _Bomberman_ franchise's reputation, along with Bomber-kind in real life, should be restored soon. It's all up to Aaron, Ami, Arctic Bomber, and Blaze Bomber to finish the job."

Mona couldn't help but wonder about what happened tonight. "Just one detail still bothers me: why did Shepherd hire a bunch of convicted felons, such as the Killer Mohawks, just to terminate us?"

"Two reasons," answered Lance. "Number 1: greed, and number 2: he's a selfish bastard who will go to such extreme lengths to make sure we never live to spread the truth about Project: ACT ZERO."

"Even if it means bailing out those dangerous crooks who had both me and Lance on their kill list," summarized Bill.

Wario scoffed in response. "Shepherd's a freakin' joke! He doesn't give a crap about the damage he's inflicted, as long as his half-assed organization gets the profits!"

"I guess all we can do now is pray for our friends' safe return," said Yuffie. "They're not expendable, and neither are we..."

[End BGM]

* * *

_Mission 6B: The "boss rush"  
__At the time Bill, Lance, and all the freedom fighters were pitted against the Killer Mohawks, the Four Contras had eventually reached Area 51 after having blown up all of General Sheperd's BigCore warships.  
__It is not uncommon, however, that the forbidden base had all sorts of powerful outer defenses at its disposal, even today.  
__February 11, 20XX  
__10:40 PM_

The time had come for us to thwart Shepherd's twisted project once and for all. As soon as we arrived at Area 51's location, we heard a blaring klaxon going off below. Then came a searchlight, pointing directly at the CrygorCopter. Ami and I shielded our eyes, and suddenly felt strange as the searchlight shone at us before shutting off. We were flabbergasted as to why it turned off rather than stay on our trail, but we set our trains of thought aside for an upcoming ambush.

"Aaron, Ami, are you okay?" asked Blaze Bomber.

"Yeah," I replied, albeit confused. "I don't know why that light gave us a strange feeling."

"It's probably nothing." Ami shrugged.

[Fight BGM: Boss Theme C (Star Fox 64)]

Without warning, a large, concealed hatch opened up from the surface just next to Area 51, and released a giant brain-like mutant. "Looks like we've got company!" exclaimed Arctic Bomber.

Ami noted, "I think it's Brain Golem, from _Salamander_ - aka. _Lifeforce_! Not to mention a few other _Gradius_ games he showed up in..."

"I knew it! General Shepherd and his merry men are really playing with those _Gradius_ bosses we've had to face tonight!"

Blaze Bomber warned us over Arctic's rambling, "Keep your wits about you, everyone! This isn't your average shoot-'em-up game!"

I smirked in response. "Heh. I know that feeling, Blaze Bomber."

Brain Golem floated towards our direction, and stopped momentarily to grow two arm-like tentacles from his body, each with claw-like hands. Then he floated about again, flailing his arms about and shooting acidic blobs out of his hands. We took care to avoid that, and like from the _Gradius_ games, unloaded on him as soon as he opened his one eye. We had to maneuver around since his arms acted as shields to his eye; either way, he wasn't too much trouble. With a final blow from Arctic Bomber's Bowling Bombs (shot out of our side cannons), we blew Brain Golem to guts; his remains gradually evaporated upon hitting the ground (and our cockpit, much to Ami's dismay).

The large hatch on the surface opened up again, this time releasing a circular Core-style warship. Known by many _Gradius_ fans as Tetran, it appeared in a good number of _Gradius_ games to date, firstly in _Salamander_/_Lifeforce_. It opened up its four tentacle-like arms to swing away, and fire bullets from its arm tips. Once again, our flight skills enabled us to avoid its gunfire, and even blast the barrier panels protecting the core within. However, each barrier panel that's destroyed split into a spread of "suicide bullets", headed our way. We barely avoided getting hit, while Tetran changed its attack pattern to spin its arms around with blazing speed. In _Gradius V_ fashion, it rapidly fired its laser shots like crazy. We could not react quickly in time, and ended up completely losing the CrygorCopter's force field.

"Dang!" grunted Blaze Bomber. "It'll take an hour for our helicopter to fully recharge its force field!"

Ami added, "Don't panic, guys! Just...don't...panic!"

Now that the chopper was vulnerable to damage, we took care to destroy the rest of the circular warship's barrier panels, despite taking some damage (but not to the rotors, thankfully) from both the laser shots and "suicide bullets." Finally, after all the trouble we've just experienced, we took out the core, destroying Tetran in the ensuing explosion.

[End BGM]  
[Fight BGM: Ridley Battle (Metroid: Zero Mission)]

Unfortunately, we only had a moment to take a breather, as it was time for part 3 of the boss endurance. The large hatch on the surface reopened once more to send out another Core-style warship, before closing up for the third time. Then Arctic Bomber blurted, "I know that thing! It's the Crystal Core, nicknamed Ice Ice for some weird reason..."

I wasn't surprised either. "Don't tell me, you fought it in _Gradius III_ on SNES, right? But then again, it did show up in _Gradius II_, first off."

"No time to reminisce, you two," interrupted Ami. "We have to stay focused since we're now open to damage."

The Crystal Core commenced with extermination by waving its tentacles, while shooting laser beams from both the tips and the frontal part of its main body. Because the tentacles act like shields to protect the blue core within, we maneuvered about to avoid the laser shots and find the opening. While the main body was momentarily uncovered, we blasted open the barrier panels. Eventually, the Crystal Core closed its tentacles to fully cover the now-exposed blue core, and fired its laser shots like a machine gun. We were merely grazed, but thankfully again, not on the rotors. The Crystal Core stopped firing to stretch out its tentacles, enabling us to destroy the core, thus obliterating the whole warship.

Despite our efforts, Blaze Bomber began to worry about the outcome of the battle. "How many more of these Bacterion warships do we have to face before the CrygorCopter goes down?"

Before he could ponder any further, Blaze stopped there as the large hatch reopened to release yet another Core-style warship from beneath the surface. This time, however, it was a large, circular ship known only as the Covered Core. Being defensive, it was equipped with a rotating shield which looked like a nuclear symbol. Fortunately, though, it wasn't as difficult as the previous warships (minus Brain Golem) we've had to eradicate. All it did was rotate its shield around its main body, stopping momentarily to fire some missiles that came up around us. Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber destroyed the missiles with their cannon fire, while Ami and I blasted the barrier panels (and avoiding the "suicide bullets" spitting out of the wreckage) to uncover the core within. With teamwork, we succeeded in blowing up the Covered Core, hoping this was the last one.

[End BGM]  
[Alert BGM: Vile Intro (Mega Man X)]

"The base should be running out of its stolen Bacterion warships by now," said Ami.

Just then, we were contacted on radio by none other than General Shepherd. _Huh?! You're STILL alive?!_

"Hell yeah, we are!" I replied triumphantly. "Oh, and what was with that searchlight just now? Care to tell us, _sir_?"

_I'm afraid that's classified. However, I have but one more Bacterion warship in reserve. I didn't want to have to waste it on you, but you leave me no other choice! Release the Dellinger Core!_

[End BGM]  
[Boss BGM: VS Vile (Mega Man X)]

With that, the treacherous general ended the transmission as the large hatch opened up for the final time, revealing the Dellinger Core itself. Although it did not appear in many _Gradius_ games rather than quite a few, mostly _Gradius III_, it posed a good enough threat with many laser cannons mounted on its two stretchable arms. It started the fight by doing just that, and fired a volley of lasers at us, inflicting more damage on the CrygorCopter...and this time, on the rotors. The Dellinger Core stopped firing, and closed its arms to assume its large, circular figure. Immediately, it rammed toward us to damage the CrygorCopter further. Even with our flight skills, we could not maneuver as well as we normally would, due to the damaged rotors. The Dellinger Core opened its arms once more, but stopped just halfway through to fire diagonally in our direction. Meanwhile, we used whatever time we had left aboard the CrygorCopter to dismantle the barrier panels, avoid "suicide bullets" spitting out of said panels, and destroy the core within.

As the Dellinger Core began exploding, it went for a last-ditch effort by swinging one of its arms at the tail of the CrygorCopter, while ramming its main body at the hull. Right after it detonated in a nuclear explosion, our only ticket back to Diamond City was completely wrecked beyond all repair.

"Aaaack!" cried Blaze Bomber. "I guess the CrygorCopter wasn't as durable as we thought, mostly when pitted against killing machines from another galaxy!"

"More like the Bacterion warships, to boot!" added Arctic Bomber.

Then I called out, "Brace yourselves, everyone! We're going down!"

"It'll be a rough landing!" shouted Ami.

[End BGM]

No matter how hard Ami and I tried to maintain our balance, the CrygorCopter was rotating around in circles. In just moments, we crash-landed onto the surface just outside Area 51, ripping the landing skids clean off the bottom of the chopper in the process. When we recovered a moment afterwards, we found the chopper on fire and the cockpit controls crackling with electricity.

Ami shook my body in an attempt to wake me up. "Aaron! Aaron, get up! We have to make our exit!"

Upon hearing her voice, I awoke with a start to take note of the excessive damage. "Huh? Aw hell, you're right! Arctic, Blaze, take what you can!"

But Arctic Bomber thought of something else. "Wait! I think I can cool things down a little with my blizzard!"

"We can't!" denied Blaze Bomber. "The CrygorCopter has taken too much damage; it'll blow any second!"

The ex-Hate Bomber gasped in response. "In other words...BAIL OUT!"

We all scrambled for the exit, grabbing some heavy armorsuits that Blaze Bomber designed just in case of emergency. Arctic Bomber, on the other hand, grabbed ahold of her assault rifle and jumped out with us. We got away just seconds before the CrygorCopter exploded, leaving nothing but a large, flaming wreckage. At the very least, we were glad to have escaped with our lives, but to stop General Shepherd and return home unscathed was a different story.

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

The CrygorCopter may have been destroyed, but the heroic Contras still have their namesake cruiser on hand...and they will need its autopilot to bail them out of trouble when the time is right.


	9. The means to an end

Finally at Area 51 despite the unscheduled crash-landing, the Contras take the final battle inside to destroy the rest of the stolen Bacterion warships along with the treacherous general himself. Enjoy the conclusion, folks!

**DISCLAIMER: Contra belongs to Konami, whereas Bomberman still remains a property of Hudson Soft as of March 1, 2012. WarioWare, on the other hand, is owned by Nintendo. Any songs "used" throughout the course of this fanfic are properties of their respective owners, along with any characters that aren't within the three franchises listed here, unless stated otherwise.**

* * *

Chapter 8: The means to an end

_Mission 7: Area 51  
Having averted death after a helicopter crash, the Four Contras head on in to the restricted Area 51 itself. While it was said to have housed experimental aircraft and weapons systems, recent reports indicated that the base is also involved with both the alien cell of Red Falcon, along with stolen Bacterion technology - courtesy of General Shepherd and his personal army.  
February 11, 20XX  
10:55 PM_

[Alert BGM: Bowser Attacks! (Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time)]

Having emerged from a nearby rock formation we used to protect ourselves from the debris, thrown by the helicopter explosion, we got yet another transmission from General Shepherd, who sounded angry at our perseverance. _Oh, why is it so difficult to kill just the four of you, anyway?!_

"It's because of both our video game knowledge, and real-life training," I answered. "Now, care to tell us about the searchlight your men used on us?"

_I told you, it's classified. But if you want to find out that badly, you'll just have to come to my office alive._

"You really are paranoid, aren't you?" questioned Ami.

_You're just the same as those two Bombermen who used to work for Red Falcon. Attention, Gilgamesh One, fire mission - target Bacterion hatch - danger close._

Upon hearing Shepherd's words, Blaze Bomber said to himself, "I never worked for Red Falcon to begin with; I was brainwashed."

The G.O. commander's voice came over our communicators. _That's too close to the entrance, sir! We might not be able to launch anymore Bacterion attack craft if we shoot there!_

_I'm not asking for an opinion, just send it!_ yelled Shepherd.

_Roger, fire mission danger close!_ The transmission on our communicators ended here with artillery cannons coming out of the base, poised to kill us at all costs.

"Oh, CRAP! Not again!" cried Arctic Bomber.

"Everyone, get behind the rock formation quickly, and keep your heads down!" warned Blaze Bomber.

We got back to the rock formation, and went prone without delay. Immediately, the outer cannons shot out a barrage of artillery shells like a machine gun, followed by firing a mega shell. Within seconds, the artillery fire landed all over the front of the base and its large hatch (for dispatching Bacterion warships), killing and wounding every one of Shepherd's soldiers opening fire on us. In the end, the mega shell exploded upon hitting the ground, incinerating the dead soldiers' bodies and the wreckage of our CrygorCopter. Although Ami and I didn't have time to recite our Konami Barrier incantation, we turned on our 5-hit barriers via our Contra Rifle and Bomberman Watch. While that saved us from certain death, we were a bit shell-shocked from the blast, and our heavy armorsuits destroyed. Had the mega shell been a nuclear bomb, the radiation from the explosion would have killed us with nothing left on our bodies, not even a single strand of our DNA. But since it wasn't, we were thankful we didn't suffer any severe injuries.

[End BGM]

Arctic Bomber panted momentarily, and muttered angrily, "Damn...since when does Shepherd care about danger close? I mean, he wasted all of his shells just to kill us for freak's sake..." She looked down and glanced over to Ami in both grief and sadness.

[Suspense BGM: Taloraan Sky (Star Wars Rogue Squadron)]

"Hey, uh...Ami?"

"What is it, Arctic Bomber?"

"...Red Falcon's right, isn't he? We're all expendable, aren't we? Doomed to be cast out like garbage and all that..."

Ami sighed. "No, no...we're not expendable. Well, Aaron and I felt that way five months ago when we destroyed Red Falcon, Sniper Bomber, and Axe Bomber once again..."

"Yeah," I added. "But, Bill and Lance told us a few times over the months - even tonight - that we shouldn't let his or Shepherd's words rattle us. We know who we are, and how we live our lives dictates who we are. We're not expendable if we risk our lives fighting for our ideals, the people we love and respect..."

Ami cracked a wan smile. "In short, we're true heroes. We are Contras."

Blaze Bomber nodded in agreement. "You're right. We fight not just for mankind, but Bomber-kind as well. I've just figured out why Shepherd's bringing Project: ACT ZERO into fruition. He must really want to wipe out all living Bombermen and women on Earth, and even planet Bomber as well. Ever since both the Alien Wars and World War III, he believes that our kind must perish at any cost, regardless of their alignment. Simply put, he hates Bombermen with a vengeance."

"In other words, any Bomberman not worthy of serving him is mortally revoked of his or her right to live," summarized Arctic Bomber.

"Only the ones that he'll have personally created are considered 'worthy'." Ami paused to crack her knuckles. "Let's finish this."

[End BGM]

* * *

[Stage BGM: Sigma's Fortress - Stage 3 (Mega Man X)]

After recovering from another nearby explosion, we ran towards the entrance to the inside of Area 51. Since it was a restricted area, it's very unlikely that we'll run into a stray Smash Ball for the Final Smash attacks at all. And because I lost my Laser Beam on my Contra Rifle from the crash-landing, I was stuck with my Ice Breath power-up for the rest of our campaign. Luckily, Blaze Bomber had a backup Spread Gun to give me. He tossed the power-up itself towards my gun, thus filling the empty weapon slot. Then he had me and Ami stand back, so he could combine his flame jets with Arctic Bomber's blizzard. With fire and ice mixed up, they created a tag-team attack, the Particle Bomb, which set off a large enough blast to tear open the metal gates.

"Wow!" beamed Ami. "I didn't know you two could do that!"

"I think I've seen that move once before, in _Final Fantasy IV: The After Years_..." I commented.

Shepherd's voice could be heard blaring over the PA speakers. _Attention all available units: kill the Four Contras at once! I say again, kill the Four Contras on sight!_

Blaze Bomber: "I hate to say this, but these aren't soldiers...they're vermin."

Arctic Bomber: "I couldn't agree with you more, Blaze Bomber! Those morons are just throwing away their lives for nothing!"

Shepherd's personal army of US soldiers (including the remnants of "Gilgamesh One") ran towards our direction, intent on putting us out of the picture so he could carry on with his anti-Bomberman propaganda. They were each armed with M16, M4A1 and AK-47 machine guns alike, all of which were illegally modified with armor-piercing bullets as per Shepherd's orders as part of Project: ACT ZERO. All of their M16s and M4A1s, despite the illegal modifications, were mounted with M203 grenade launchers as a secondary fire. Throughout the firefight, Blaze Bomber dreaded having to fight the soldiers all over again like he did back when he was brainwashed by Red Falcon, during the Alien Wars. But since Shepherd's soldiers were not the good guys, Blaze Bomber felt that he had no other choice but to go forward this way, for the sake of man and Bomber alike.

Meanwhile, a sergeant leading Gilgamesh One's soldiers glanced over to one of the privates. "Those scum are outnumbered by us! But just in case, we'll outnumber them some more! Oh yeah, they're gonna learn the hard way why nobody _ever_ destroys our general's government property...Release the cloned Xenomorphs!"

"Huh?" asked the flabbergasted private. "But General Shepherd said not to let them out unless he says so!"

The sergeant elbowed him with the butt of his machine gun. "I don't care! I want that $1 billion reward on behalf of Gilgamesh One, so DO IT!" He chased off the private by opening fire on him.

"Alright, already! Dammit, it's always me! Do this, do that, go release the cloned Xenomorphs...I always have to!" Against his will, the private opened up a metal crate full of Xenomorphs, only for one of them to impale him to death with its pointed tail upon breaking out.

The sergeant grinned greedily. "Better get ready to die, Contras! We're gonna be rich!"

"Not on your life," I retorted. "I saw what you did to one of your own guys! You're a terrible sergeant!"

"Freak you, terrorist punk!"

Ami slapped her forehead in disgust. "You are the worst of the worst, and we're no terrorists! You dishonor us all! I mean, at least Mad Dog and Scorpion had better morals than you'll ever do!"

"I don't have to listen to a prissy lady who thinks she's tough! Here, Xenomorphs: dinnertime!" Unfortunately, for the greedy sergeant, the cloned Xenomorphs turned on him instead, killing him and his men with their inner mouth-like tongues. While they were distracted by their main course, I fired away with my Spread Gun. Ami followed up with her Fire Bombs to dispose of the aliens.

"Looks like that evil sarge's gonna have a lot more to worry about than a dishonorable discharge," commented Arctic Bomber. "He'll be saying hello to the Five Dastardly Bombers along with the rest of Red Falcon's goons in hell."

"We're not out of the hot water yet," called Blaze Bomber. "There are more cloned Xenomorphs coming our way!"

The commander of Gilgamesh One, concealed by a window on the upper level of the Xenomorph storage, called out to us. "You'll never return alive from here! I'll honor my soldiers' services by taking you to hell with me!" He triggered a self-destruct sequence, intending to blow up the entire storage chamber.

"When you die with me, the general will be free to eradicate all of Bomber-kind, and replace them with his own army of Bombermen and women! And by army, I don't mean the Dark Force Bombers!"

"What a way for you to join your guys in the most ass way possible!" yelled Arctic Bomber.

Blaze Bomber, on the other hand, focused his attention on me and Ami. "We've got to get out of the chamber before it explodes and kills us!"

We swerved around the aggressive Xenomorphs, and ran to the nearest exit before the blast door sealed it. As soon as we made it through, the Xenomorph storage chamber exploded, vaporizing all of the aliens, Shepherd's soldiers, and the rogue commander of Gilgamesh One. However, the commander's words did not go unheard to Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber. Despite that they were Dark Force Bombers to begin with, they were still Bombermen in general.

[End BGM]

Aqua Bomber was the first to complain, "So, Shepherd and his guys don't think we Bombermen are worthy of living anymore, eh? That wasn't part of the deal!"

Cyclone Bomber added, "Even our old master, Bagular, cared about us! Let's ditch this base and do a bit of conquering on our own!"

Arctic, Blaze, Ami, and I got inside their room, with me calling out, "There you guys are!"

"Oh, hey there!" responded Aqua Bomber. "As much as we'd love to tear you limb from limb, we've decided to take five for a while."

Cyclone Bomber explained, "We heard what that commander said over the speakers, and we're not gonna do our job for General Shepherd anymore. It seems he only cares about the Bombermen and women that he personally creates, and not us Dark Force Bombers! Oh, and he's not far from here. The elevator you need to take should be half a klick, as in 500 meters, from this door in front of you."

"Huh?" asked Ami.

"Don't misunderstand. We're still gonna defeat you, but not tonight. When the time comes, we'll do it on our own. Oh, and one more thing: that searchlight we used on you sapped some of your holy power, but it turns out that we 'bad guys' can't touch it at all, not even General Shepherd himself."

Aqua Bomber eyed me and Ami. "So, he just went and made copies of your DNA containing the holy power, to override the rejection. You might still be able to take him out, so we can face off with you another time. But just because we told you what we know doesn't mean we like you! Until then..." He took an escape route to a helicopter, with Cyclone Bomber following suit.

"I guess we're free to go on then..." said Ami.

* * *

After a rather strange scene with the remaining Dark Force Bombers, we moved on to the elevator, fighting off the rest of the rogue soldiers along the way. Eventually, we reached the top floor of Area 51, and entered General Shepherd's personal office.

[Interlude BGM: Theme of Nebula (Mega Man Battle Network 5: Double Team DS)]

"You know what they say about revenge..." the general began, "you better be ready to dig four graves. Go ahead and end it. It won't change anything. I still have plenty of Xenomorphs and Bacterion warships at my disposal. Just think of how magnificent they are, and how they can change our world forever..."

We glared at him, but stood our ground rather than put a bullet through his head. "Hmph. I knew you couldn't do it. You're such good warriors. However, you could never take that extra step to do what was absolutely necessary."

I growled angrily. "I should smash your skull in...personally. Just think of the innocent lives you've taken over the course of your so-called project, when you forced them into these armored suits that look like Master Chief clones..."

Shepherd huffed in denial, taking a moment to smoke his cigar. "You know, I never understood that. Why did you judge me? In fact, why did you judge us, the Blood Falcon organization, as the enemy in your so-called counter-broadcasts?"

"You killed innocent people!"

"The means to an end!"

Blaze Bomber shouted next, "You started a massacre!"

"I caused a revolution!"

Then Arctic Bomber bellowed out loud, "YOU BETRAYED THE LAW!"

Shepherd was flabbergasted, though only for a moment. "...I betrayed what? You Bombermen are all the same. You destroy anything you see fit with your spherical bombs, and even enjoy it to the bitter end. You of all people don't understand that in order for humanity to survive, these Bombermen must die. The only ones I'll allow to live are those I personally create to follow my order without question, and without fail."

"But not all Bombermen and women are bad!" shouted Ami. "The ones that attacked our planet were working for Red Falcon! He and his loyal followers created them! The rest of them that aren't among the attacking forces are from planet Bomber - neutral or good! And in case you're too blind to see reality, Aaron and I are human beings like you and all the other guys!"

"What do you know about a Bomberman? Or perhaps Cheerful White, Cool Black, Cute Pink? Not to mention Arctic Bomber or even Blaze Bomber, for that matter? Do you know who they all are?" We paused for a moment, staring Shepherd down. "Well...no concern of mine! You Contras are all fated to be killed here, anyway. For you see, Project: ACT ZERO was basically the ultimate weapons project, designed for complete genocide of every living Bomberman in the universe, much less planet Bomber. You've destroyed my project, you annihilated my experimental Super Bombermen, and you kept forcing me to take extreme measures..."

Blaze Bomber sighed painfully. "Look, I'm aware I took some of the US soldiers' lives long ago, during the Alien Wars...but only because I wasn't feeling myself. I was brainwashed against my will by Red Falcon. However, committing genocide against Bomber-kind in retribution won't change anything! In fact, Aqua Bomber and Cyclone Bomber told us what one of your commanding officers told us before they walked off. You don't even care about the rogue Bombermen that weren't even yours to begin with."

"Who cares if I broke my promise to them? I can always mass-produce my own Bombermen and women, modeled after the Five Dastardly Bombers and the Dark Force Bombers, with the power of the alien cell. Oh, and speaking of which, I've combined my copies of Aaron and Ami's DNA samples containing the holy power, with the alien cell. Now that the original DNA samples are no longer needed to make anymore copies, I've fused that mixture with myself, and in the process created the ultimate super-being! How fitting that you would be killed by the one energy source derived from your worthless ancestors! Behold the true, combined strength of your holy power and the alien cell of Red Falcon!"

[End BGM]

He raised his arms, and transformed into a tall, humanoid alien form of himself before our eyes! "5 and a half years ago, during the Alien Wars...I lost over 15,000 men in a blink of an eye while General Rupert was still in charge of sending in Bill Rizer and Lance Bean to assess the situation. The following years since, came World War III, and I lost another 15,000 men throughout the entire campaign...including the Delta Force soldiers that assisted you. And what did the world do about it? Nothing! They just frickin' watched! Tomorrow, there will be no shortage of volunteers...no shortage of patriots. I know you understand, but luckily I'm not above denying your last words. Therefore, I'll give you one chance to speak before you die."

Blaze Bomber gasped at the sight. "What vile form he's taken! We've got to stop him!"

Arctic Bomber growled, "He can't mess with what originally belonged to Aaron and Ami's bloodline to begin with!"

* * *

[Interlude BGM: Doppler Demo (Mega Man X3 (PSX))]

During the entire conversation and just as the final battle was about to begin, Blaze Bomber had recorded an important message to email to all our friends in Diamond City. In spite of his fear that we're likely to die at this point, he willfully accepted our fate and went on with said message.

_THE CONTRAS' LOG ENTRY - BY BLAZE BOMBER_  
_February 11, 20XX_  
_11:30 PM_

_This is for the record. History is written by the victor. However, history is filled with liars, if not every one of them. If he lives and we Contras die, his truth becomes written - and ours is lost. General Shepherd will be a hero, despite losing all of Project: ACT ZERO._

_To make things worse, he claims both his personal army of Bombermen and the armada of stolen Bacterion warships, to be a sure-fire way of changing planet Earth forever. And on account of changing the world, all you need is one good lie and a river of blood. He's about to complete the greatest trick a liar ever played on history. His truth will be the truth. But only if he lives, and we die._

_Bill Rizer and Lance Bean, if you're hearing this and we really have died in battle: please take care of Cheerful White, Cool Black, Cute Pink, and even our close friends of WarioWare Inc. and what's left of Puffy AmiYumi, for us. Whatever happens, we cannot let General Shepherd wipe out every living Bomberman in the known universe and replace them with his own army..._

_-END TRANSMISSION-_

[End BGM]  
[Final battle BGM: VS Andross (Star Fox Adventures)]

With General Shepherd transformed, he experienced with the power the alien cell had in store by super-dashing across his office, knocking us over and taking away my Spread Gun power-up. Then he followed up with hurling energy bursts in mid-air to hurt us some more, causing heavy damage to the office in the process. Thankfully, we weren't injured badly due to the 5-hit barriers Ami and I had on our bodies.

"Do you feel it?" called Shepherd. "The power of the alien cell knows no bounds in comparison to your holy weapons. We could've been gods of our nation, if not the entire world! And besides, you'd be angry too if you lost this many close friends of yours. You of all people should have been eager to help make our country into the most powerful nation on Earth. Instead, you choose to oppose my faction and kill me without even knowing that you're all mere tools fighting a lost cause. In short, you're lousy soldiers who don't know the meaning of absolute power."

I grunted, "We can understand losing innocent lives during a war...but still, venting out the hatred by committing genocide on an entire species...let alone Bomber-kind, won't change anything!"

Then Ami questioned, "Also, do you have any idea what the Bacterions will do once they get ahold of their own warships you stole right under their mechanized noses?"

"Killing us won't stop them from jumping into hyperspace towards Earth!" shouted Blaze Bomber.

Shepherd replied in denial, "So what if they come in a matter of months? I'm going to rebuild both planets Earth and Bomber. The Xenomorphs and Bacterion warships will prove very useful for profiting as bio-weapons!"

Arctic Bomber groaned in annoyance. "You mentioned that before, jackass! You're no god if you abuse your powers as a general! Killing innocent people, stealing technology from another galaxy, and stockpiling what used to belong to Red Falcon's forces...how do you plead? Huh?!"

"What are you, a stubborn Bomber-girl? I'm not guilty, but you are for nosing in on our business!"

"I knew you'd say that! HEE-YAAARRGH!"

The Mistress of the Cold attacked aggressively with her assault rifle, firing a barrage of Diver Mines at General Shepherd to inflict damage. He retaliated by charging up for a Hadouken-style energy blast in his hands; Blaze Bomber pulled Arctic Bomber out of the way just before Shepherd unleashed his attack on her, killing instead his own soldiers that ran in here to back him up. The ex-Hate Bombers strafed around to draw the traitorous general's attention, while Ami and I opened fire with both her Ice Bombs and my Ice Breath (which I luckily still kept) to freeze him over. Just as Shepherd broke free of the ice, Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber performed their tag-team Particle Bomb attack, dishing out more damage to him. Suddenly, he stopped super-dashing towards us as his alien form went haywire after enough damage had been done. He held his head in pain like his brain was about to explode, his voice gradually becoming distorted as he mutated again.

"UUGGGGHH!...Too much power!...**Can't...maintain...EEEEEEEEYYYAAAAAAAAAARRRRGGGGHHH!**"

"Oh, my gosh!" gasped Blaze Bomber. "He's changing again!"

Beyond Shepherd's control, he mutated even further, much to our disgust. Only Arctic Bomber had the guts to say something at this point. "Wh...what the hell IS that?"

**"Everything must burn!" **Shepherd beckoned, his voice completely distorted.

A major side effect from having fused the alien cell of Red Falcon with himself, General Shepherd was no longer a fair-skinned man but a distorted, alien beast of mass proportions with two bald, humanoid heads situated at either side of his bulk. He began jumping up and down, and towards the back of his office, heavily damaging both his seat and desk, knocking a computer over, and breaching a big hole in the wall. Then he lunged at us with one of his heads on a long neck, banging upwards and downwards to injure us some more (taking away my Ice Breath power-up), while completely destroying his office appliances. Then a rain of molecule-shaped projectiles was summoned from the ceiling, just barely touching our injured bodies as we moved out of the way. Arctic Bomber and Blaze Bomber unleashed yet another Particle Bomb attack, hurting Shepherd's exposed head.

"Everybody okay?" I asked.

"I've taken some damage, but I think I can still fight," answered Ami.

"How are we gonna exterminate the distorted monster who's both massive AND quick?!" complained Arctic Bomber.

"We keep firing, until his form changes once more!" replied Blaze Bomber.

When Shepherd finished his attack, he jumped across the heavily-damaged office once again, nearly crushing us flat as he broke another big hole on the other wall. Then he lunged out at us for more damage with his other head, but instead of banging against the ceiling and floor simultaneously, it chased us in a snaky fashion. We put as much strength as we could into avoiding the sharp fangs from the head's mouth, and returned fire with our weapons. Once that was over, Shepherd jumped back to the center of the office, and transformed once again. Although his third form's much smaller, it was now an alien brain with bald, humanoid heads for a circular shield.

Shepherd's voice was still distorted, though he now communicated telepathically. _Pitiful Contras. Your kind cannot defeat me now._

"Care to wager on that, Shepherd?" I retorted. "Let's end this here and now, Ami!"

The pink-haired half of Puffy AmiYumi piped up in agreement, "I'm with you as always, Aaron! We just might survive to tell the tale..."

"I knew you'd say that."

Shepherd's brain floated around the room, its circular shield of alien heads bobbing back and forth. Everytime we shot his brain, the heads extended briefly, eventually spreading out to hit us in the face as we kept attacking with wild abandon. Apparently, Ami and I forgot about that part from _Contra: Hard Corps_, but that didn't stop us from standing our ground. We stopped firing to wait for the heads to retract back towards Shepherd's brain. Five or so minutes later of keeping the circular shield at a tolerable size, we finally prevailed over the traitorous general, bringing about the end of the Blood Falcon organization for good. He floated haphazardly as his circular shield of alien heads went out of control.

[End BGM]

_You're all idiots! Bombermen destroy anything they see fit with their spherical explosives! You and your loved ones will be dead, buried, forgotten...spending eternity rotting in the ground! GRRAAAAARRRRGGHHH! _His telepathic death scream faded into nothingness as the humanoid heads detonated around his brain in a whirlwind of explosions, incinerating what's left of him for good.

Arctic Bomber commented in response, "The only Bombermen that destroy anything they see fit, are the ones that corrupt warmongers like you or Red Falcon have personally created! You mess with us Contras, you get the horns!"

After a brief moment of silence, Blaze Bomber said, "Now that it's finally over, I'm afraid we'll have to take out Area 51 by setting all Bacterion warships to self-destruct. I am well aware that we'll be held responsible for this, but it has to be done here and now. There should be a master control room beyond the damaged wall..."

We followed Blaze Bomber to the destination, and watched him initiate the self-destruct sequence on the warships. Then we began evacuating Area 51 by finding a nearby helicopter. Nearly ten minutes later, however, we couldn't find anymore of them. Blaze Bomber had a feeling we might not return alive, so he activated the Contra Cruiser's autopilot with his remote control ahead of time, eventually bringing it all the way here from Diamond City. Once we stepped outside, we got inside our space car and used it to escape from Area 51. The moment we had reached minimum safe distance, the Bacterion warships' cores had overloaded, causing them to detonate in a chain of explosions, destroying the entire base and leaving behind a large crater.

* * *

[Ending BGM: Ending - Farewell (Gradius II (NES/Famicom))]

As for us, the Four Contras, we were relieved that General Shepherd's reign of terror was over. Now, our friends in Diamond City awaited our safe return before midnight, and Blaze Bomber said, "There. With the Bacterion warships and cloned Xenomorphs destroyed in addition to Area 51, life in the country will return to normal."

"But what good would that do?" worried Arctic Bomber. "The Bacterions have probably already picked up on their 'missing' warships' location by now!"

Ami added, "Our actions may not stop them from coming in a matter of months, but if they really do, we'll be ready for them. That's not our only concern, though: since we destroyed Area 51, we're likely to be held accountable. I just don't know how we're gonna talk this out, _if_ we really do get sued..."

I sighed momentarily, knowing how Ami felt about our actions tonight. "I know it's a pain to have to destroy such a restricted area in the process, but we can't risk any further jeopardy if the warships and Xenomorphs fall into the wrong hands before the Bacterions even arrive in the near future. Yes, we are bound to be held accountable for the destruction of Area 51, but we'll be ready to explain our side of the story if we must. And to quote Bill and Lance once again, we know who we are, and how we live our lives dictates who we are."

"In short and like before: we're true heroes. We are Contras...and you're right, Aaron. We'll explain ourselves together because we know the truth, only the truth, and nothing but the truth about Project: ACT ZERO and the stolen Bacterion warships that General Shepherd's been stockpiling inside Area 51."

Blaze Bomber smiled warmly. "That's the spirit, Ami. Let's go home." Henceforth, we flew through the starry-night sky back to Diamond City aboard our Contra Cruiser, for our job was done.

THE END

(Ending Credits)  
Aaron (me) - MYSELF  
Ami - JANICE KAWAYE  
Bill Rizer - BOB BUCHHOLZ  
Lance Bean - SYLVESTER STALLONE  
Arctic Bomber - GREY DELISLE  
Blaze Bomber - SCOTT MENVILLE  
Yuffie Kisaragi - CHRISTY CARLSON ROMANO  
Penny Crygor - JANICE KAWAYE  
Jimbo - BILL PAXTON  
Sully - MICHAEL BIEHN  
General Shepherd - LANCE HENRIKSEN  
Wario - CHARLES MARTINET  
Mona - LESLIE SWAN  
9-Volt - TARA STRONG  
Phoebe - HYNDEN WALCH  
5-Volt - GREY DELISLE  
18-Volt - CHRIS RAGER  
Kat - GREY DELISLE  
Ana - TARA STRONG  
Cheerful White - TARA STRONG  
Cool Black - VERONICA TAYLOR  
Cute Pink - JANICE KAWAYE  
Ashley - CHRISTINA PEYSER  
Young Cricket - SCOTT MENVILLE  
Jimmy Thang - JEFF BENNETT  
Dribble - KEVIN MICHAEL RICHARDSON  
Spitz - MIKE MCAULIFFE  
Colonel Bassad - TOM KANE  
Mohawk King - CHRISTOPHER SABAT  
Aqua Bomber - BRIAN DOBSON  
Cyclone Bomber - KATHLEEN BARR  
Fire Bomber - PAUL DOBSON  
Earth Bomber - MICHAEL DOBSON  
Gilgamesh One commander - GARY CHALK

[End Credits]  
[End BGM]

**NO RESTRICTED BASES AND/OR AREAS WERE DESTROYED DURING THE MAKING OF THIS STORY.**

* * *

That's all for DCC #6. Though I will admit it wasn't exactly the best crossover fic I've ever written, much less converted from script format into a standardized version, I had to go in another direction since the heroic Contras defeated the Red Falcon Empire. Other than that, I hope you enjoyed this story overall.


End file.
